Module E-08 Flashcards
What Aspects of Motor Function are under (Indirect) Cerebellar Regulation?
1) Synergy of movement: Collective coordination of elemental muscular contractions to create purposeful (perhaps highly complex) motoric output (e.g., walking).
2) Posture: Orientation of body parts relative to each other and the vector of gravity.
3) Muscular tone: Basal levels of contraction of muscles.
Describe the method of the indirect control that is being done by the cerebellum
- The cerebellum acts as a comparator
o Motor centers (e.g., primary motor cortex) transmit signals directly or indirectly to lower motor neurons to produce purposeful movement or simply to influence muscle tone or reflexive responsiveness
o Copies of such motor instructions reach the cerebellum
o The cerebellum compares sensory feedback with original motor instructions
o With mismatched motor instructions and outcomes, the cerebellum sends corrective signals to motor centers,
thereby influencing subsequent motor instructions
o Under the feedback-driven guidance of the cerebellum, the motor centers continually adjust output to facilitate
smoothly coordinated and posturally appropriate movements (this necessarily implies spatial and
temporal accuracy of movement)
Which side of the body does the cerebellum control?
Cerebellum indirectly regulates ipsilateral body
What occurs in acute cerebellar damage?
often yields pronounced motor deficits (ipsilaterally)
In what type of Cerebellar damage recovery possible?
Substantial functional recovery often occurs with long-standing but nonprogressive cerebellar damage
Describe embryological development of Cerebellum
emerged embryologically as a protuberance of the
metencephalon to occupy much of the posterior cranial fossa
Describe the General structure of the cerebellum
o The cerebellum is grossly hemispheric
o Hemispheres are separated by a midline vermis (worm)
A sagittal view of the vermis reveals an ornate complex of white matter (arbor vitae or tree of life) that penetrates
superficial gray matter
Name the Cerebellar lobes and their location
1) Anterior lobe: Superior to the primary fissure
2) Posterior lobe: Inferior to the primary fissure
3) Flocculonodular lobe: Mediolaterally oriented strip of tissue situated ventrally on the cerebellum, separated from the posterior lobe by the posterolateral fissure
Describe the somatotopic map of the cerebellum
o The trunk is functionally regulated by more medial cerebellar structures
o Limbs are functionally regulated by more laterally
What are the 3 functional zones of the cerebellum and describe their locations?
- Vestibulo-cerebellum- flocculonodular lobe
- Spino-cerebellum - anterior lobe
- Cerebro-cerebellum - posterior lobe
Function of the Vestibulo-cerebellum
afferents from vestibular apparatus to permit regulation of balance andeye movements
Function of the Spino-cerebellum
The spinal cord provides this region with sensory feedback regarding consequences of motor activity, thereby assisting with regulation of gross truncal and limb movements
Function of the Cerebro-cerebellum
Integrating motor with sensory feedback coordinates and
smoothes movements requiring precision of location and
timing
What forms the cerebellar peduncles?
Cerebellar efferents and afferents
Where are the fibers going from each of the cerebellar peduncles?
o Middle cerebellar peduncles largely carry information from the pons into the cerebellum
o Superior and inferior cerebellar peduncles carry bidirectional traffic, with the inferior cerebellar peduncle being the greater conductor of cerebellar afferents
o Superior cerebellar peduncles transmit cerebellar signals to the pons and midbrain (except those destined for the vestibular nuclei)
o Inferior cerebellar peduncles relay much information from
spinal levels into the cerebellum, although the superior cerebellar peduncle also contributes
o Communications with the olive, cranial nerve VIII and the vestibular nuclei also involve the inferior cerebellar peduncles
How does afferents allow cerebellum to act as a comparator?
- Motor systems (e.g., corticospinal system) advise the cerebellum of their impending influence on lower motor neurons
- Somatosensory systems (e.g., dorsal spinocerebellar system) advise the cerebellum of the results of motor system output
- Comparison of intended outcomes (motor instructions) with actual outcomes (somatosensory feedback) permit the cerebellum to transmit corrective instructions to motor systems
Describe the Cerebro-ponto-cerebellar Inputs (Copy of Motor Instructions)
o The precentral gyrus and anterior paracentral lobule of the frontal lobe emit large volumes of motor information, as part of the corticospinal and corticobulbar motor systems
o Other frontal areas along with parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes also contribute
o Copies of corticospinal and corticobulbar signals destined for lower motor neurons also terminate in the ipsilateral deep pontine nuclei
o Ponto-cerebellar (transverse) fibers then cross the midline to enter the cerebellar hemisphere opposite to the cortical site of origin via the middle cerebellar peduncle
Name 3 Examples of Spinal cerebellar Input (Sensory Feedback)
1) Dorsal spinocerebellar system
2) Ventral spinocerebellar system
3) Cuneocerebellar system