what pases through the brain stem?
-nerve fibers pass from the cerebral hemispheres to the spinal cord through this
brain stem components
diencephalon components
- hypothalamus
thalamus location
-superior to midbrain (beneath corpus callosum)
thalamus function
-contains neurons that act as relay center for all sensations except smell
hypothalamus location
-inferior to thalamus
hypothalamus function
midbrain location
-superior to pons
midbrain components
pons location
-superior to medulla oblongata
pons components
medulla oblongata location
- at level of foramen magnum
medulla oblongata components
-cardiovascular centers, motor, and sensory decussation of nerve fibers
reticular activating center
what happens when the RAS is damaged?
-may result in a coma
cerebellum
- coordinates movement (i.e. controls flec/extensor muscles)
types of tracts/pathways
- corticospinal tract
dorsal column pathway type
-medial lemniscus pathway
dorsal column components
- fasciculus gracilis and cutaneous
dorsal column origin
-spinal cord
dorsal column decussation
-medulla
dorsal column destination
-area 3, 1, 2
corticospinal tract pathway type
-descending motor pathway
what is the difference between sensory impulses and motor signals?
-motor signals pass from the cortex to the spinal cord without synapsing