Unilateral naris occlusion with custom-made plugs for reversible olfactory deprivation in juvenile and adult mice

Abstract

Deprivation paradigms that reduce environmental input have been successfully applied across multiple species and sensory modalities, including vision, audition, somatosensation, and olfaction in order to understand how neurons and circuits respond to loss of sensory input. One notable advantage of studying sensory deprivation in the rodent olfactory system is the ease and control with which smell loss can be induced. Various methods of olfactory deprivation have long been available and rely on blocking a nostril, either through invasive and often non-reversible approaches such as chemical ablation or surgical procedures, or through reversible approaches such as unilateral naris occlusion using custom-made nose plugs. Here, we provide a systematic description of this well-established method, including its construction from commercially available materials, procedures, validation, and reliability in post-weaning mice, thereby providing a detailed and reproducible framework for controlled, reversible olfactory deprivation.