Brain signals that reveal how people identify different smells
Official title: Electrophysiological Representations of Odor in the Human Brain Study 2
Run by Northwestern University · NCT07386236 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This research will test whether brain signals recorded from people having epilepsy surgery show patterns that match how they perceive different smells.
Quick facts
| Study type | Interventional |
|---|---|
| Ages | 12 Years to 65 Years |
| Sex | All |
| Enrollment | 28 (estimated) |
| Sponsor | Northwestern University Academic / other |
| Locations | 1 site (Chicago, Illinois) |
| Status | Recruiting |
| Started | March 5, 2025 |
| Main results expected | March 1, 2028 |
| Study ends | October 1, 2028 |
| Registry record updated | February 4, 2026 |
| Trial ID | NCT07386236 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
Is this trial a fit for you?
✓Likely a good fit
Ideal participants are English-speaking people aged 12–65 who are already scheduled for intracranial brain surgery for medically intractable epilepsy and have no history of smell or taste problems.
✕Probably not a fit
People who are not undergoing intracranial surgery, who have existing smell or taste dysfunction, or who fall outside the 12–65 age range would not be eligible and are unlikely to receive direct benefit from participation.
A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.
What this trial studies
The study records direct neural activity from people undergoing intracranial epilepsy surgery while they smell and name odors, linking brain signals to perceptual reports. In Experiment 1A participants freely name odors to capture natural perception while neural responses are recorded, and in Experiment 1B researchers use odor metamers to manipulate perceptual similarity and collect trial-by-trial ratings and neural data. Analyses focus on whether similarity in neural features, including early high-frequency responses in piriform cortex, corresponds to perceptual similarity and odor identity. The approach aims to separate chemical stimulus properties from perceptual identity using human behavioral ratings combined with direct brain recordings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the results could clarify how human brains encode odor identity and inform future diagnostic or therapeutic approaches for smell disorders.
How similar studies have gone: Related animal and preliminary human intracranial work suggests early high-frequency piriform responses can carry odor information, so this protocol builds on promising but still limited human evidence.
Who can join: the full rules
Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * Ages 12 to 65, english speaker, patients undergoing brain surgery for treatment of medically intractable epilepsy Exclusion Criteria: * screening for history of smell or taste problems
Where it's running
-
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois, United States Recruiting
Study contacts
- Principal investigator: christina zelano — Northwestern University
- Study coordinator: Naelly Arriaga, MPH
- Email: zelanolab@gmail.com
- Phone: 312-503-7244
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How to take part
- Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
- Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
- Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.