spinal cord Flashcards
what grooves are the spinal cord divided left and right into?
anterior median fissure and posterior median sulcus
what is gray matter composed of mainly in the internal spinal cord?
neuron cell bodies
what is white matter composed of mainly in the internal spinal cord?
myelinated axons
what is the central canal or the spinal cord filled with?
cerebrospinal fluid
what is the gray commissure the site of?
axons cross from one side of CNS to other
what type of nuclei does the posterior gray horns contain?
sensory nuclei
what type of nuclei does the lateral gray horns contain?
autonomic motor nuclei
what type of nuclei does the anterior gray horns contain?
somatic motor nuclei
what do cell bodies of interneurons in the posterior gray horns receive and process?
incoming sensory input
what do the sensory nuclei of the posterior gray horns contain?
cell bodies of spinal cord interneurons
what do the cell bodies of the lower motor neurons located in the anterior gray horns send?
somatic motor output towards skeletal muscles
what does the somatic motor nuclei of the anterior gray horns contain?
cell bodies of lower motor neurons
what does the autonomic motor nuclei of the lateral gray horns contain?
cell bodies of preganglioic neurons
what do the cell bodies of preganglionic neurons located in the lateral gray horns send?
autonomic motor output towards glands, cardiac and smooth muscles
what is anterior white commissure the site of?
where axons cross from one side of CNS to other
what is white matter in the spinal cord subdivided into?
white columns
what do white columns contain
ascending and descending spinal cord tracts= bundles of axons
what do ascending tracts conduct?
sensory input to brain
what do descending tracts conduct?
motor output away from the brain
what does the tract name often reveal?
origin, destination and white matter location
what are the posterior white columns?
- fasciculus gracilis
- fasciculus cuneatus
what sensory info does fasciculus gracilis/cuneatus tracts conduct?
- fine touch
- vibration
- pressure
- proprioception (conscious)
what are the lateral white columns?
- lateral spinothalamic
- anterior and posterior spinocerebellar
- lateral corticospinal
what sensory info does the lateral spinothalamic tract conduct?
pain and temp
what sensory info does the anterior and posterior spinocerebellar tracts conduct?
proprioception (unconscious)
where are the anterior and posterior spinocerebellar tracts located?
lateral white columns
what are the anterior white columns?
- anterior corticospinal
- anterior spinothalamic
what sensory info does the lateral corticospinal tract conduct?
-somatic motor output that controls the skeletal muscles of the limbs
is the lateral corticospinal tract an ascending or descending tract?
descending
what sensory info does the anterior corticospinal tract conduct?
somatic motor output that controls the skeletal muscles of the axial skeleton (neck and trunk)
is the anterior corticospinal tract an ascending or descending tract?
descending
are the anterior and posterior spinocerebellar ascending or descending?
ascending
what ascending tract is responsible for crude touch and pressure?
anterior spinothalamic tract
what do sensory pathways connect?
receptors to brain
what do motor pathways connect?
brain to skeletal muscles
what do somatosensory pathways conduct?
general sensory input from receptors to brain
how many relay neurons are involved in the somatosensory pathways?
3
what 3 relay neurons are involved in the somatosensory pathways?
first/second/third-order neurons
what are the three main somatosensory pathways?
- spinothalamic pathway
- posterior column pathway
- spinocerebellar pathway
what does the spinothalamic pathway conduct?
sensations of crude touch, pressure, pain and temp
where do the first-order neurons of the spinothalamic pathway conduct sensory input from receptors into?
posterior gray horns
where do the second-order neurons of the spinothalamic pathway conduct sensory input to?
thalamus