Nervous system: Grey and White matter

Question 1

What is grey matter made up of?

Answer 1

• cell bodies
• dendrites
• axon terminals

Question 2

What regions of the CNS can grey matter be found?

Answer 2

1. The cerebral cortex
2. Nuclei
3. The dorsal and ventral horns

Question 3

What is white matter made up of?

Answer 3

• axons
• fibres
• oligodendrocytes
• astrocytes

Question 4

What regions of the CNS can white matter be found?

Answer 4

1. Neighbouring gyri are connected together by association fibres which are made of white matter.
2. Commissures connect the 2 hemispheres together (eg corpus callosum)
3. Projection fibres run longitudinally through the CNS

Question 5

What are the funiculi?

Answer 5

There are 4 funiculi in the brain - dorsal, ventral and 2x lateral
They are areas of white matter containing ascending and descending fibres (both sensory and motor)
They contain tracts eg laterocorticol tracts

Question 6

What is a tract?

Answer 6

A connection between 2 areas of grey matter
All the fibres within the tract have a similar function
Fibres only travel one direction