Developmental expression of the 3-fucosyl-N-acetyl-lactosamine/CD15 epitope by an olfactory receptor cell subpopulation and in the olfactory bulb of the rat.

In the olfactory epithelium a subpopulation of receptor cells were CD15 (3-fucosyl-N-acetyl-lactosamine)-positive at their somata and their processes. Cytomorphology and location implied their mature character. The labeled neurons were associated with olfactory cilia and showed a unique distribution within the olfactory epithelium and a remarkable numerical change during postnatal ontogeny. The axons of the marked olfactory receptor cells possibly play a role in guiding other axons to their appropriate targets in the olfactory bulb. In the olfactory bulb immunoreactivity was predominantly found in the glomerular and in the external plexiform layer and showed an age-related shift from the superficial to the deep layers.