Practical 3 - Somatic sensation Flashcards
describe the rough visual strcuture of the spinal cord
The spinal cord consists of a central H-shaped region of grey matter surrounded white matter.
dorsal columns carry what info?
dorsal columns, carrying fine touch and proprioceptive information
anterolateral system carries what info?
anterolateral system,
carrying pain and temperature information.
Most sensory information passes via the _______ on route to the cerebral cortex.
Most sensory information passes via the thalamus on route to the cerebral cortex.
The ventral nuclei of the thalamus are concerned particularly with ….
The ventral nuclei of the thalamus are concerned particularly with somatosensory relay and motor co- ordination
what is the internal capsule?
The internal capsule is a massive tract of white matter linking the thalamus to the cerebral cortex
Fine touch and proprioception are represented in the….
Fine touch and proprioception are represented in primary somatosensory cortex in the postcentral gyrus.
describe pains cortex representation?
Pain has more complex cortical representation, including in the anterior cingulate cortex and the insula.
how many main ascending somatosensory pathways are there?
2
T or F
The ascending somatosensory pathways comprise two very different systems for sensation from the skin, with different anatomy, different sensory receptors and different perceptual modalities
The ascending somatosensory pathways comprise two very different systems for sensation from the skin, with different anatomy, different sensory receptors and different perceptual modalities
what are the 2 afferent ascending somatosensory pathways
- One carries tactile (touch) and proprioceptive sensation,
- the other nociception (perceived as pain) and thermal sensation
describe how nociceptive and thermal sensations are carried…. (pathway)
- afferents through the dorsal roots to terminate in the spinal cord dorsal horn, close to their entry
- at least one local synaptic relay in the superficial dorsal horn
- projection cells send axons across the spinal cord in the ventral commissure
- to the contralateral anterolateral white matter where they ascend
- the ascending fibres terminate at many sites in the brainstem (medulla, pons and midbrain) as well as the several parts of the thalamus
According to the location of the ascending fibres, this is the anterolateral ascending system, sometimes referred to as the spinothalamic tract.
describe the path tactile signals take to the brain
- enter spinal cord
- ascend in dorsal columns on ipsilateral side without a synaptic relay
- fibres terminate at the rostral end of the spinal cord in the gracile and cuneate nuclei (dorsal column nuclei)
- axons from these nuclei cross the midline and ascend through the medial part of the brainstem as a large tract of fast-conducting fibres called the medial lemniscus
- These fibres project to the thalamus
- from there third order neurons carry tactile and conscious proprioceptive information to the somatosensory cortex in the postcentral gyrus of the parietal lobe
t or F
The anterolateral system and dorsal column-medial lemniscus systems have different locations in both the spinal cord and the brainstem, so losses of different types of somatic sensation can be diagnostic of lesions at specific sites.
T
the anterolateral system and dorsal column-medial lemniscus systems have different locations in both the spinal cord and the brainstem, so losses of different types of somatic sensation can be diagnostic of lesions at specific sites.
anterolateral ascending system, sometimes referred to as the spinothalamic tract carries what information?
Nociceptive and thermal sensations
dorsal column-medial lemniscus system carries inforamtion about what>
tactile and proprioception sensation
describe the centra lregion of the spinal cord in cross section
The spinal cord consists of a central region of nerve cells and processes (grey matter)
what is spinal cord grey matter surrounded by/
The spinal cord consists of a central region of nerve cells and processes (grey matter) surrounded by bundles of mainly myelinated axons (white matter) travelling to and from the brain, and between different spinal levels
T or F
the amound of white and grey matter changes at different spinal cord levels?
T
H shaped grey matter:
ventral horns correspond to what?
motor function
H shaped grey matter:
dorsal horns correspond to what?
sensory function
which regions of the spinal cord is the grey matter more extensive?
regions of the cord that innervate the brachial and lumbar/ sacral plexuses to the limbs, where the dorsal and ventral horns are enlarged (associated with limb innervation).
The thoracic cord has small _____ and ______ horns
The thoracic cord has small dorsal and ventral horns
The thoracic cord has small dorsal and ventral horns, but has two extra cell groups not found at other levels.
what are they?
- The intermediolateral nucleus
- Clarke’s nucleus (Clarke’s column)
describe the The intermediolateral nucleus
composed of sympathetic pre-ganglionic neurons, the axons of which run to the chain of sympathetic ganglia.
describe clarkes nucleus
Clarke’s nucleus (Clarke’s column) has relay cells for proprioception from the lower limbs.
Shape of spinal cord at main levels
Shape of spinal cord at main levels
describe how the white matter is organised?
3 basic bundles, columns or fasciculi: dorsal, ventral and lateral.
The major somatic sensory pathways comprise two large ascending tracts with very different function:
what are they? where do they run in the spinal cord?
the anterolateral system conveys noxious and thermal (“pain and temperature”) information, running as its name suggests anteriorly (ventrally) in the lateral column.
The dorsal column conveys discriminative (“fine”) touch sensation, and proprioception.
whre can the dorsal column be further subdivided?
At cervical and upper thoracic levels
At cervical and upper thoracic levels the dorsal column can be further subdivided into…..
a lateral cuneate - fibres from upper limb
medial gracile division - fibres from lower limb
describe the dorsolateral and ventral columns in the white matter
The dorsolateral and ventral columns contain a mixture of ascending and descending tracts (many of which you will see in the next practical)