The Spinal Cord

Flashcards about the Spinal Cord lecture notes

What are the four main functions of the spinal cord?

Conduction, Neural integration, Locomotion, Reflexes

What does the conduction function of the spinal cord involve?

Bundles of axons that conduct information up and down the cord

What is the neural integration function of the spinal cord?

Receiving input from various sources, integrating information, and executing appropriate output.

How is Locomotion coordinated in the spinal cord?

Groups of spinal neurons coordinated by the brain.

What do reflexes play a vital role in?

Posture, motor coordination, and protective responses to pain or injury.

What are the names of the wings of the spinal cord gray matter?

Posterior horns (dorsal horns) and anterior horns (ventral horns)

What is the function of the spinal cord white matter?

Communication pathway

Name the three groups (columns) in which bundles of axons are arranged

Posterior, Lateral, Anterior

What is the name given to the tracts that compose the columns in the Spinal cord White matter?

Ascending and descending tracts

What is the function of the Ascending tracts?

Carry sensory information to higher levels of spinal cord or brain

What is the function of the Descending tracts?

Carry motor signals from brain down the cord to meet motor neurons that control muscles and glands

What are the three spinal meninges membranes?

Dura mater, Arachnoid mater, Pia mater

What two kinds of structures compose the Peripheral Nervous System (PNS)?

Nerves and Ganglia

What are nerves?

Bundles of neuron axons and blood vessels wrapped in connective tissue

Name the wrapping structures around axons and fascicles

Endoneurium, Perineurium, Epineurium

What are Ganglia?

Swelling containing the cell bodies of their peripheral neurons

Spinal cord gives off 31 pairs of spinal nerves that emerge from the spinal cord as nerve rootlets from what horns?

Posterior and Anterior

What is a reflex?

A quick, involuntary reaction of a gland or muscle to a stimuli

Name the 4 important properties of Reflexes

Quick, Involuntary, Stereotyped, Stimulation

List each of the components of the Reflex Arc Pathway

A receptor, An afferent (sensory) neuron axon, An integrating center, An efferent (motor) neuron axon, An effector

What receptors detect stimuli during a stretch reflex?

Muscle spindles

What is a flexor (withdrawal) reflex?

Protective reflex that requires coordination of multiple muscles and is more than a quick jerk