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In our previous experiments on animals evidence was found that citrus fragrance can restore the stress-induced immunosuppression, suggesting that citrus fragrance may have an effect on restoring the homeostatic balance. Since a dysregulation of the neuroendocrine and immune function is thought to be associated with psychosomatic or psychiatric disorders an attempt was made to restore their mental health by stimulation of one of the sensory systems. Fragrance (citrus was our choice) which comforts through stimulation of the olfactory system was applied to depressive patients. It was given to 12 depressive subjects and the results indicated that the doses of antidepressants necessary for the treatment of depression could be markedly reduced. The treatment with citrus fragrance normalized neuroendocrine hormone levels and immune function and was rather more effective than antidepressants.

Injections of the anterograde axonal tracer Phaseolus vulgaris leucoagglutinin were made into individual nuclei of the vestibular nuclear complex of the rat to identify specific projections to the thalamus. The results showed that the superior vestibular nucleus and the medial vestibular nucleus, especially its rostral-to-middle parts, project to the lateral part of the parafascicular thalamic nucleus (corresponding to the centromedian nucleus in primates), the transitional zone between the ventrolateral thalamic nucleus (VL) and the ventral posterolateral thalamic nucleus (VPL) (the region considered to be the nucleus ventralis intermedius of Vogt [Vogt C. 1909. La myeloarchitecture du thalamus du cercopitheque. J Psychol Neurol 12:285-324.]), the lateral part of the centrolateral thalamic nucleus and the dorsal part of the caudal VL; the spinal vestibular nucleus projects to the lateral part of the parafascicular thalamic nucleus, the transitional zone between the VL and the VPL, the caudal part of the ventrobasal complex, and the suprageniculate thalamic nucleus. These results suggest that vestibular information is transmitted not only to the cerebral cortex (mainly area 2V and area 3a) but also to the striatum. They also suggest that vestibular activity may affect gaze control by means of vestibulothalamocortical pathway in addition to vestibulo-ocular and vestibulopremotoneuronal routes.

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