Location and functions of various parts of the brain and spinal cord (3.2)

Question 1

Where is the hypothalamus located?

Answer 1

This part of the brain lies below the thalamus and above the pituitary glands.

Question 2

What is the function of the hypothalamus?

Answer 2

Question 3

Where is the medulla oblongata located?

Question 4

What is the function of the Medulla Oblongata?

Answer 4

Question 5

____ fibres between the spinal cord and the brain ___ __ in the medulla. This means that the left cerebral hemisphere is connected to and controls the ____ side of the body and vice versa.

Answer 5

Nerves

Cross over

Right

Question 6

What is the spinal cord?

Answer 6

It is an elogated rod of nervous tissue that extends from the medulla oblongata through the foramen magnum.

Question 7

Where is the spinal cord?

Answer 7

Situated in the verterbral canal of the vertebral column and is approx. 45 cm long.

Question 8

Vertebral column

Answer 8

It is the backbone.

Question 9

Vertebrae

Question 10

Vertebral canal

Answer 10

Is a hollow tube formed in the vertebral column

Question 11

Discs of cartilage

Answer 11

Occur between successive vertebrae to stabilise the vertebrae and allow bending.

Question 12

Spinal cord

Question 13

Central Canal

Answer 13

Runs through the spinal cord and is filled with cerebrospinal fluid.

Question 14

What is the shape of the spinal cord?

Answer 14

H shaped central area of grey matter made up of nerve cell bodies, dendrites and synapses.

Question 15

What surrounds the white matter?

Answer 15

The white matter surrounds the grey matter and is made up of axons with myelin sheaths.

Question 16

The central canals occurs in the centre of the ___ ____. It is filled with _____ _____ fluid. The central canal runs down from the ventricles in the ____.

Answer 16

Grey Matter

Cerebrospinal fluid

Brain

Question 17

The cord is partly divided into right and left sides by two _____.

Answer 17

grooves

Question 18

What leaves and enters the spinal cord?

Answer 18

A pair of special nerves enters and leaves the spinal cord between succcesive vertebrae. There are 31 pairs of spinal cord.

Question 19

What does every spinal nerve have?

Answer 19

Each spinal nerve has a dorsal root that enters the grey matter and a ventral root that leaves the grey matter.

Question 20

What forms the ganglion?

Answer 20

A collection or neuron cell bodies forms a ganglion in the dorsal root.

Question 21

Define Ganglion.

Answer 21

A small mass of neuron cell bodies, found mainly in the peripheral nervous system.

Question 22

What is the function of spinal cord? (2)

Answer 22

1. The spinal cord serves as a pathway for impulses from receptors to the brain and from the brain effectors.
2. It has an integrative function in that it is the seat of primitive reflex actions called spinal reflexes. They serve to protect the body, eg. knee, jerk reflex, response to contact with a dmaaging stimulus, bladder reflex.