Lab 7 Thalamus

Question 1

• Thalamic nuclei, input and outputs

Answer 1

o Medial geniculate n. Input: superior colliculus/auditory, Heshl’s gyrus
o Lateral geniculate n. Optic tract/visual. V1
o Pulvinar, superior colliculus and visual cortical/attention. Association areas
o VPL, medial lemniscus and spinothalamic/touch, body. Primary somatosense
o VPM, VTTT and fibers from chief sensory n. V and spinothalamic n. Touch for face. Primary somatosensory
o Centromedian n. cerebral cortex, vestibular, GP etc. attention arousal, subthalamic n and putamen
o Dorsomedial, amygdala and olfactory/memory. Prefrontal and limbic system
o Ventral lateral, dentate and interposed n. Motor coordination. Primary and premotor.
o Anterior n, MTT/memory. Cingulate cortex, hpc.

Question 2

• Auditory system (NCSLIMA)

Answer 2

o Spiral gang. CN VIII, cochlear n, superior olivary, lateral lemniscus, inferior colliculus, medial geniculate, auditory cortex. Bilateral (cochlear to auditory)

Question 3

• Vestibular system

Answer 3

o Lateral, medial, superior, and inferior vestibular n. Levels of 6/7, 8/9, 10/12
o Origin vestibular gan. CNVIII and nuclei. Projections: Cerebellum (vesibulocerebellar tract FN lobe), spinal cord (vestibulospinal tracts), oculomotor n (3, 4, 6) via MLF, cerebral cortex via thalamus.