Diencephalon Flashcards
The diencephalon is located between ____&____ and extends from the ____ to ____
the cerebrum and midbrain
interventricular foramen to the posterior commissure.
The diencephalon is divided into two parts: ___&____
pars dorsalis (dorsal part) and pars ventralis (ventral part).
Pars dorsalis consists of the ___, ____&____
thalamus, metathalamus, and epithalamus
Pars ventralis consists of the ____&____
hypothalamus and subthalamus.
The cavity of the diencephalon is the ____ ventricle
3rd
The thalamus (dorsal thalamus) is a large egg-shaped mass of grey matter located _____ to the ___ventricle.
laterally to the third
The thalamus has ____ poles &_____ surfaces
anterior and posterior ends (or poles)
four surfaces:
superior, inferior, medial, and lateral.
The ____ surface of the thalamus forms the greater part of the lateral wall of the third ventricle and is interconnected by the ____ adhesion (connexus).
medial surface
interthalamic adhesion
The lateral surface of the thalamus is related to the ____ capsule and separated from the ____ nucleus.
internal capsule
lentiform nucleus
The superior surface of the thalamus is related to the ____ and forms the _____ the lateral ventricle.
caudate nucleus
floor of the central part of
The inferior surface of the thalamus is related to the ____ anteriorly &____ posteriorly,_____ thalamus separates it from the tegmentum of the midbrain.
hypothalamus and ventral thalamus
Ventral thalamus
_____ is, a type of tissue lining the third ventricle, is reflected from the lateral wall
The ependyma
This reflection in the 3rd ventricle is marked by a line called the _____
taenia thalami.
Below the taenia thalami, there is a narrow bundle of fibers known as the ____ or ____
stria medullaris thalami or stria habenularis.
The thalamus consists mainly of grey matter (neuronal cell bodies) with a small amount of white matter (nerve fibers).
The superior surface of the thalamus is covered by a thin layer of white matter called the _____ while the lateral surface is covered by a similar layer called the
stratum zonale,
external medullary lamina.
The grey matter of the thalamus is divided into ___ main parts by a Y-shaped sheet of white matter called the _____
3 main part
internal medullary lamina/septum
This lamina is placed vertically and divides the thalamus into
lateral, medial, and anterior parts.
In the anterior part, there are several nuclei collectively referred to as the anterior nucleus.
The largest nucleus is in the ___ part
Medial part called medial dorsal nucleus
In the medial part, the largest nucleus is the medial dorsal nucleus, which can be further divided into a _____&______
magnocellular part (anteromedial) and a parvocellular part (posterolateral).
In the lateral part, the nuclei can be subdivided into a _____&_____ arranged in two tiers.
ventral group and a lateral group
The ventral group of the lateral part contains nuclei listed in anteroposterior order: namely
Ventral anterior nucleus
Ventral lateral nucleus (also known as ventral intermediate nucleus)
Ventral posterior nucleus
Ventral posterior nucleus, which is further subdivided into:
Ventral posterolateral nucleus (lateral part)
Ventral posteromedial nucleus (medial part)
The lateral group nuclei in anteroposterior order:
Lateral dorsal nucleus (or dorsolateral nucleus)
Lateral posterior nucleus
Pulvinar
The thalamus contains additional nuclei, including
Intralaminar nuclei (prff Centro median nucleus) embedded within the internal medullary lamina
Midline nuclei
Midline nuclei is scattered@
scattered between the medial part of the thalamus and the ependyma of the third ventricle.
Intralaminar nuclei embedded within the _______, it contains numerous nucleus with ___ being the most important
internal medullary lamina
centromedian nucleus being the most important.
The afferent thalamic connection
Exteroceptive and proprioceptive impulses ascend through the medial lemniscus, spinothalamic tracts, and trigeminothalamic tract.
Visual and auditory impulses reach the lateral and medial geniculate bodies, respectively.
Taste sensations are conveyed through solitariothalamic fibers
Olfactory impulses likely reach the thalamus through the amygdaloid complex
The thalamus also receives connections from the cerebral cortex, cerebellum, and corpus striatum.
Efferent (outgoing) connections from the thalamus
Thalamocortical projections project information to almost the entire cerebral cortex.
Thalamic radiations or peduncles, including anterior, superior, posterior, and ventral bundles, transmit thalamocortical fibers.
Efferent projections from the thalamus also reach the corpus striatum, hypothalamus, and reticular formation.
The lateral part of the thalamus consists of ___&___ groups of nuclei.
ventral and lateral
The ventral posterior nucleus is important clinically and has two parts: ___&___
ventral posterolateral and ventral posteromedial.
Sensations reach the sensory area of the cerebral cortex and the second somatosensory area
Connections to the Ventral Anterior Nucleus:
Receives fibers from the globus pallidus and substantia nigra pars reticularis.
Sends efferents to the premotor and supplemental motor areas of the cerebral cortex.
Connections to the Ventral Lateral Nucleus:
Receives afferents from the dentate nucleus of the cerebellum and fibers from the globus pallidus.
Efferents from this nucleus project to the motor area of the cerebral cortex.
Connections to the Ventral Lateral Nucleus:
Receives afferents from the dentate nucleus of the cerebellum and fibers from the globus pallidus.
Efferents from this nucleus project to the motor area of the cerebral cortex.
Connections of Medial Group of Thalamic Nuclei:
The medial dorsal nucleus is involved in controlling emotional states and somatic reflexes.
Damage to this nucleus leads to a decrease in anxiety, tension, and aggression.
Connections of Anterior Group of Thalamic Nuclei:
The anterior nucleus is part of the circuit of Papez for recent memory.
It receives fibers from the mammillary body and projects efferents to the gyrus cinguli.
Other Connections:
The intralaminar nuclei receive inputs from the body and other brain regions.
Efferents from intralaminar nuclei reach the cerebral cortex and striatum.
Functions of these nuclei are not well understood.
The midline nuclei have connections mainly with the limbic system and play a role in memory and arousal.
Thalamic Syndrome: occurs due to
It occurs due to a vascular lesion of the thalamic branch of the posterior cerebral artery
Metathalamus: It includes the ___&____ bodies.
medial and lateral geniculate bodies
medial and lateral geniculate bodies are oval grey matter situated below the ____ and lat. To____
Pst. Part of the thalamus
Lat to colliculi of the midbrain
Medial Geniculate Body: It serves as
a relay station in the auditory pathway and contains medial, ventral, and dorsal nuclei.
Connections of the Medial Geniculate Body Afferents
Receives fibers from the lateral lemniscus, either directly or after relaying in the inferior colliculus.
Fibers from the medial geniculate body form the auditory radiation, which passes through the sublentiform part of the internal capsule to reach the auditory areas of the cerebral cortex.
Receives impulses from both cochleae and fibers from the auditory area of the cerebral cortex.
Connections of the Medial Geniculate Body Efferents
Neurons in the ventral nucleus of the medial geniculate body respond to different sound frequencies and project to the primary auditory cortex.
Neurons in the dorsal nucleus project to auditory areas surrounding the primary auditory area.
Lateral Geniculate Body: It serves as
a relay station in the visual pathway and is located below the pulvinar, anterolateral to the medial geniculate body.
Lat. Geniculate bodies Connections - Afferents:
Receives fibers from the retinae of both eyes.
Receives fibers from the primary visual cortex, extrastriate visual areas, superior colliculus, and reticular formation of the pons and medulla.
Receives noradrenergic fibers from the locus coeruleus and serotoninergic fibers from raphe nuclei in the midbrain
Lat. Geniculate bodies Connections - Efferents::
Fibers arising from the lateral geniculate body form the optic radiation, which passes through the retrolentiform part of the internal capsule to reach the visual areas of the cerebral cortex.
The hypothalamus is a part of the brain located below the thalamus
It is divided into three zones: ___, ___&____
periventricular, intermediate, and lateral.