IN-VITRO STUDY OF OLFACTORY RECEPTOR NEURONS EXPRESSING THE DIPEPTIDECARNOSINE

OLFACTORY neuroepithelial (OE) cells were dissociated from late stage embryonic mice and analysed for carnosine expression. The yield of car nosine neurones was twice as high when the OE cells were seeded along with the olfactory bulb cells. Carnosine neurones resulted from both i n vitro survival and neurogenesis, and were associated with clusters o f underlying flat cells immunopositive for keratin. Our results demons trate that olfactory neurones expressing their neurotransmitter carnos ine can be studied in culture, and the close association with keratin- immunopositive basal cells suggests that they are dependent on these c ells for survival and/or differentiation.