FOCAL 2-DG UPTAKE PERSISTS FOLLOWING OLFACTORY-BULB LESIONS

Exposure of rats to different odors produces spatially distinct patter ns of C-14-2-deoxyglucose uptake (2-DG) in the glomerular layer of the main olfactory bulb. However, lesions of specific regions of the bulb that reliably contain 2-DG foci reportedly do not impair the ability of rats to perform olfactory-guided behaviors, suggesting that the les ioned olfactory bulb retains odor-responsiveness, Because the absence of focal 2-DG incorporation in lesioned olfactory bulbs has not been v erified by 2-DG autoradiography, it cannot be concluded that focal res ponses in the olfactory bulb do not contribute to the encoding of olfa ctory information, To examine the effects of bulb lesions on 2-DG upta ke in the olfactory bulb, we placed lesions in spe cific regions of th e bulb that reliably contain 2-DG foci. We then exposed rats to odors 3 or 6 weeks later to determine if the lesions effectively eliminated focal 2-DG uptake in these bulbs, The results indicate that lesioned o lfactory bulbs contain focal regions of 2-DG uptake in response to odo r stimulation.