Olfactory Systems in Insects: Similarities and Differences Between Species

Abstract

Many insects rely on their sense of smell to identify food, prey or mates. Odors are detected by the sensory organs and the resulting signals processed by the brains before they can lead to behaviors. A large body of research spanning several decades has generated a wealth of information about olfactory coding and the underlying olfactory systems in many different species of insects. While many features of the olfactory systems are highly conserved, remarkable differences are also found between different insect species. Here we provide a detailed comparison of the molecular, anatomical, and physiological parameters of olfactory systems across species including flies, moths, bees and mosquitoes. We focus on the first three layers of the olfactory system, namely the antenna, the antennal lobe, and the mushroom body. The comparative analysis provides a useful foundation for understanding the role of specific features of olfactory systems in odor coding.