How do olfactory nerve fibers pass from the nasal cavity into the brain?

Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

olfactory system Sagittal view of the human nasal cavity.

Olfactory nerve fibers originate from bipolar receptor cells located in the olfactory mucous membrane of the nasal cavity. These fibers, which are the axons of the receptor cells, pass from the nasal cavity into the cranial cavity by traveling through small openings called foramina in the cribriform plate of the ethmoid bone.12

Once they enter the cranial cavity, these fibers terminate in the olfactory bulb, a structure in the forebrain where sensory information about odors is processed.123