Brainstem Flashcards
Midbrain cranial nerve attachment
•CN III, IV
Pons cranial nerve attachment
•CN V, VI, VII, VIII
Medulla cranial nerve attachment
CN IX, X, XI, XII
Sensory nuclei functional groups
Special (vision, hearing, balance), somatic, visceral (taste, visceral),
Motor nuclei functional groups
Parasympathetic, branchial (from pharyngeal arches in embryo), somatic
Location of midbrain
- Located in tentorial notch
- Formed by folds of dura mater known as tentoriumcerebelli
Nuclei of CN III (oculomotor)
Oculomotor nucleus (somatic motor) and Edinger Westphal nucleus (parasympathetic)
Nuclei of CN IV (trochlear)
Trochlear nucleus in caudal midbrain on dorsal side of brainstem
Nuclei for CN V (trigeminal)
Trigeminal motor nucleus (medial since motor)
Principal (main or chief) trigeminal nucleus (lateral since sensory)
CN VI nuclei
abducens nucleus in lower pons
CN VII nuclei
facial motor nucleus in lower pons
CN XII nucleus
Nucleus of efferent axons in nerves IX and X
Nucleus ambiguus – swallowing and vocalization
Nucleus that sends its fibers laterally into CN X
Dorsal motor nucleus of X – Preganglionic parasympathetic
Tract lateral to nucleus ambiguus and function
Descending hypothalamo-spinal sympathetic tract
-Modulates the activity of neurons in the IML of the spinal cord
Function of solitary nucleus (nucleus solitarius)
Elongated sensory nucleus in the medulla
Receives axons from nerves VII, IX, and X.
Conveys information about taste and visceral sensation.
Vestibular nuclei function and CN exits
Found under the floor of the fourth ventricle, partly in the open medulla and partly in the pons.
CN VI and VII
Hypoglossal nucleiu CN
CN XII
Nucleus ambiguus CN
CN IX, X
Dorsal motor nucleus of vagus CN
CN X
Spinal trigeminal nucleus CN
CN V
Vestibular nucleus CN
CN VIII
Cochlear nucleus CN
CN VIII
