Neuroscience Week 3: Lower Motor Neurons Flashcards
Upper vs Lower Motor Neurons
LMN directly synapse on skeletal/visceral muscle and are the final common output from the CNS to effector organs (monosynaptic)
except General visceral motor neurons Autonomic LMNs synapse in PNS ganglia to indirectly affect muscle tone via post-ganglionic neurons (disynaptic)
how many pairs of spinal nerves
31 pairs
Describe the pairs of spinal nerves
8 Cervical
12 Thoracic
5 Lumbar
5 Sacral
1 Coccygeal
describe the Cervical Enlargement
C5-T1; Brachial plexus
Describe the Lumbosacral Enlargement
L1-S2 (lumbar plexus)
Spinal cord anatomy
White matter: _______ Axons
Myelinated Axons
Grey Matter: __________ Axons
Unmyelinated Axons
Cervical segments have a relatively large amount of _____________ due to the large number of __________ axons traveling from neurons throughout the spinal cord up to the brain and ________ axons traveling down from neurons residing in the brain.
- White matter
- sensory axons
- Motor axons
Lower segments than the cervical have relatively less _____________ due to fewer _______________ (from the brain) that have already terminated and the lack of _________________ that lie in more anterior Spinal cord segments.
- White matter
- Upper motor neuron axons
- sensory neuron axons
Grey matter consists of?
Unmyelinated cell bodies / dendrites
Grey matter in the spinal cord appearance
Resembles an H or a butterfly on the interior portion of the SC
In the spinal Cord Enlargements the _____________ are larger due to ____________________________ that control ______ and _______ function
In the spinal cord enlargements, the ventral horns are larger due to increased numbers of motor neurons that control arm (cervical) and leg (lumbosacral) function
Which segments of the spinal cord give rise to the preganglionic fibers of the sympathetic nervous system
Thoracic segments (T1-L2) have hips labled (“IL”) which contain the cell bodies of autonomic motor neurons that give rise to preganglionic fibers of the sympathetic nervous system
Major features of lower motor neurons
Reside in the ventral horns of the spinal cord
Use Acetylcholine
have an unmyelinated cell body, but becomes myelinated by Schwann cells
Neuromuscular Junctions
Motor Unit: Neurocentric Unit
The α-motoneuron and all the extrafusal fibers it innervates
Muscles that require fine movements have smaller motor units (e.g. lips, tongue, ocular muscles 12-20 fibers)
Larger muscles have large motor units (quadriceps, gluteus maximus > 1000 fibers)
All of the fibers that it innervates are of the same type Type I, IIa, IIb
Motor Neuron Pool: Musclecentric View
- The pool consists of all the neurons that innervate a single muscle (all fibers of that single muscle)
- Motor neuronal pools for larger muscles extend over more spinal segmental units than for smaller muscles
Purpose of redundancy of motor neuron pool
- Redundancy reduces the impact of focal lesions
- Impingement of individual segment can cause pain, hypoesthesia, paresis (weakness), but not paralysis
How are motor units recruited?
- α-Motor neurons activate Type I fibers first and then recruit Type 2 fibers as needed; this produces the least amount of force necessary for a task
- Proprioceptive feedback determines the need for more/less output
Why are _____ Fibers recruited first?
Type I fibers are recruited first because they are more excitable due to Ohm’s Law V=IR
they have higher R values (resistance) α-motor neurons innervating type I fibers are smaller than α-motor neurons innervating type II fibers; thus are excited first during conscious and unconscious motor output
How are motor neuron pools distributed?
Motor neuron pools are not randomly distributed but instead are ordered as such:
αMNs innervating proximal muscles are medially located
αMNs innervating distal muscles are laterally located
This image also shows the descending pathways (red and blue outlines in white matter)
The myotatic (Stretch reflex)
Renshaw cell also sends a signal to inhibitory interneuron to inhibit antagonistic muscle
Golgi Tendon Organ reflex (clasp-knife)
Myotomes and clinically-relevant reflexes
spinal origins and reflex loops
LMN Lesions usually cause _________ deficits
Ipsilateral
(there are a few exceptions in the CNS)
More medial spinal lesions in the ventral horns affect what?
More proximal or medial muscles as more lateral lesions affect more distal or lateral muscles
Spinal Cord placement in the vertebrae
Spinal cord root compression usually occurs here
Against the superior articulatory process or pedicle
How are cervical spinal nerve roots named?
- Nerve roots are named according to the lower spinal segment that the nerve root runs between for example the nerve at the C5-C6 level is called the C6 nerve root
- The cervical nerve roots are named this way because as the root exits the spine it passes over the C6 pedicle
How are lumbar nerve roots named?
- Lumbar nerve roots are named according to the UPPER segment that the nerve runs between
- For example, the nerve at the L4-L5 level is called the L4 nerve root
- The lumbar nerve roots are named this way because as it exits the spine is passes Under the L4 pedicle
How are Spinal nerve roots named at the C7-T1 transition?
- Naming change occurs is at the C7-T1 level.
- Here, the C8 nerve exits UNDER the C7 Vertebra and Over the T1 vertebra
Disc Herniations General Rule
The nerve affected usually corresponds to the lower of the two segments of the intervertebral disc herniated
Posterolateral are the most common disc herniations (lack of vertebral ligament support)
Most common Disc Herniations
- L4-L5 95%
- C5-C6 or C6-C7 second most common
Disc Herniations Clinical Presentations
Pain, numbness/tingling, sometimes weakness in dermomyotome innervated by compressed nerve (e.g. for L4-L5 herniation: in lower back, buttocks, thigh, and may radiate to foot; sciatica is most common)
Disc Herniations Diagnosis
- Physical examination (e.g. straight leg raise)
- CT/MRI (T2 w/o contrast)
- X-rays to rule out other causes (e.g. fractures)
In Disc herniation, what causes the symptoms to be principally sensory with more minor motor components?
because muscle innervation is redundant across spinal cord segments
Why is the most common disc herniation posterolateral
the anterior longitudinal ligament and posterior longitudinal ligament resist disc herniation but there is no ligament laterally
Lower Motor Neuron Syndrome Symptoms
Paresis definition
Weakness (partial paralysis)
-Plegia suffix definition
No movement
Paralysis definition
No movement
Palsy Definition
imprecise term for weakness or no movement
Hemi- prefix definition
one side of the body
Para- prefix definition
Both legs
Mono- prefix definition
one limb
Di- prefix definition
both sides of body equally affected