Overview of the Nervous System

Question 1

What are the primary vesicles in the embryonic development of the neural tube?

Answer 1

Prosencephalon, Mesencephalon & Rhombencephalon?

Question 2

What secondary vesicles do these develop into?

Answer 2

Prosencephalon –> Telencephalon & Diencephalon

Mesencephalon stays as a single swelling

Rhombencephalon –> Metencephalon & Myelencephalon

Question 3

What do the secondary vesicles eventually develop into?

Answer 3

Telencephalon - Cerebral hemispheres
Diencephalon - Thalamus & hypothalamus
Mesencephalon - midbrain
Mesencephalon - Pons, cerebellum
Myelencephalon - Medualla oblongata

Question 4

What 3 structures form the ‘brainstem’

Answer 4

The midbrain, pons and medulla.

Question 5

Which glial cell is responsible for support, maintaining the BBB and environmental homeostasis?

Answer 5

Astrocyte

Question 6

Which glial cell is responsible for myelination in the CNS?

Answer 6

Oligodendrocyte

Question 7

Which glial cell is responsible for myelination in the PNS

Answer 7

Schwann Cell

Question 8

What is a glial cell?

Answer 8

A support cell of the nervous system. They support neurones through various jobs e.g. homeostasis, immune defence, myelination.

Question 9

What are microglia?

Answer 9

Cells similar to macrophages responsible for immune monitoring and antigen presentation in CNS.

Question 10

What are ependymal cells?

Answer 10

They are ciliated, cuboidal/columnar epithelial cells which line the ventricles and produce CSF.

Question 11

What are gyri? (Sing: Gyrus)

Answer 11

The raised ridges between two clefts on the surface of the brain (the hills)

Question 12

What are sulci? (Sing: Sulcus)

Answer 12

The clefts between two folds in the brain (the valleys)

Question 13

What are folia?

Answer 13

The equivalent to a gyrus on the hemispheres but on the cerebellum.

Question 14

What composes the Grey Matter?

Answer 14

Hugh numbers of neurone, cell processes, synapses and support cells.

Question 15

What composes the White Matter?

Answer 15

Myelinated axons. The phospholipid component gives it the white appearance.

Question 16

How is Grey/White matter arranged in the brain?

Answer 16

Grey on the outside, white on the inside.

Specks of grey within the white

Question 17

How is Grey/White matter arranged in the spinal cord?

Answer 17

White on the outside, grey on the inside.

Question 18

What are the areas of grey matter in the spinal cord?

Answer 18

Anterior (ventral) horn and posterior (dorsal) horn

Question 19

What are the areas of white matter in the spinal cord?

Answer 19

Posterior, lateral and anterior columns.

Question 20

What are the 3 components of the brainstem?

Answer 20

Midbrain, pons and medulla.

Question 21

Which area is a point of contact, but not communication, between the two thalami?

Answer 21

Inter thalamic Adhesion

Question 22

Which lobe of the brain is not visible from the outside?

Answer 22

Insular lobe

Question 23

What are the 3 meningeal layers from superficial to deep?

Answer 23

Dura mater, Arachnoid mater (subarachnoid space and CSF), Pia mater

Question 24

How to the lateral ventricles connect to the 3rd ventricle?

Answer 24

Interventricular foramen of Munro

Question 25

What are the two main components of the Enteric Nervous System?

Answer 25

Myenteric plexus and submucosal plexus