Identify The Following Structures Of The Spinal Cord: White & Grey Matter, Central Canal, Dorsal And Ventral Horns And Roots, The Spinal Meninges

Question 1

What is the structure of the spine?

Answer 1

Cervical - C1 to C7 (think Cereal at 7am)
Thoracic - T1 to T12
Lumbar - L1 to L5
Sacral - S1 to S5
Coccyx

Question 2

Describe the spinal cord anatomically

Answer 2

• Consist of grey matter which is surrounded by white matter. Arranged in columns .
• Grey matter is a H shape with two dorsal posterior horns, two ventral horns and two lateral horns.
• The cell bodies making up the spinal cord are composed of sensory neurons recieving messages from the periphery of the Body, Lower motor neurons transmitting signals to muscles and inter neurons linking the sensory and motor nerves
• Dorsal root ganglia consists of the cell bodies of the sensory nerves. The white matter is made up of sensory and motor fibres, as well as fibres of the interneurons

Question 3

Describe the Spinal cord physiologically

Answer 3

1. The impulse is transmitted from one neuron to another across the synapse
2. The cell body in the column of grey matter are stimulated by the sensory impulse.
3. The grey matter fibres which make up the white matter, transmit these impulses to the Brain
4. The cell bodies in the lower motor neuron, found in the anterior column of grey matter ar stimulated by axons of the upper motor neurons / interneurons
5. The cell bodies of those interneurons are part of the reflex arc.
6. The sensory nerve transmit the sensory impulse from the skin, the tendons, the muscles and the joints to the brain.
7. The motor nerve transmits the impulse,so from the cerebral cortex and causes the muscle to contract