Subcortical Structures
Ventricles
Ventricles – PathologyHydrocephalus
Ventricles: MRI pictures
Normal ventricles Hydrocephalus
Hypothalamus and Pituitary Gland
The hypothalamus forms the inferior and lateral walls of the third ventricle.
Hypothalamus
Hypothalamus
Hypothalamus: Function
• Links the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland (hypophysis).
• Responsible for certain metabolic processes and other activities of the autonomic nervous system.
• Synthesizes and secretes certain neurohormones, and these in turn stimulate or inhibit the secretion of pituitary hormones.
• Controls:• Body temperature;• Hunger;• Important aspects of parenting and attachment behaviours;• Thirst; • Fatigue;• Sleep and• Circadian cycles.
Pituitary Gland
Pituitary Gland: Important Hormonal Functions
• Growth.
• Blood pressure.
• Some aspects of pregnancy and childbirth including stimulation of uterine contractions during childbirth.
• Breast milk production.
• Sex organ functions in both males and females.
• Thyroid gland function.
• The conversion of food into energy (metabolism).
• Water regulation in the body.
• Temperature regulation.
• Pain relief.
Pituitary Gland
Thalamus
• Relay station
• The medial surface of the thalamus constitutes the
upper part of the lateral wall of the third ventricle.
Thalamus: Interthalamic adhesion
Also known as: intermediate mass of thalamus; massa intermedia,middle commissure and grey commissure.
Basal Ganglia
Basal Ganglia
Basal Ganglia
• Important Connection:• Motor cortex
• Parts of frontal lobe
Basal Ganglia: Pathology
• Movement disorders• Chorea (e.g. Huntington’s chorea)• Tremor (e.g. Parkinson’s Disease)
• Starting and altering activities
• Neuropsychiatric Disorders• Schizophrenia• OCD• Depression• Tourette’s syndrome• Autism• ADD
Hippocampus
• Memory
Memory
• Types of memory• E.g. immediate, long-term, implicit, explicit, episodic
• Disorders of memory• Amnesia
• Korsakoff’s
• Alzheimer’s disease
• Other dementias
Amygdala
Emotion, esp. fear and anger
Brain stem
• Medulla oblongota
• Pons
• Midbrain
• (Reticular
formation)
Terms from Development of Nervous System
• Telencephalon: cerebral hemispheres
• Diencephalon: thalamus & hypothalamus
• Mesencephalon:midbrain
• Metencephalon: pons & cerebellum
• Myelencephalon: medulla oblongata
• (Rhombencephalon:medulla, pons & cerebellum)
Medulla Oblongata
• Also called the “bulb”.
• Corticospinal tract crosses the midline here.
• Functions:• Neural control of:
• Respiration
• Blood pressure
• Heartbeat
• Swallowing
• Speech
• Gagging
• Control of drooling
Medulla Oblongata: Pathology
• Death
• Profound disability
Pons
• Major pathways for pathways running between the cerebral cortex and the cerebellum.
• Function (along with cerebellum):• Correlates postural & kinesthetic (muscle movement sense) information.
Pons: Pathology
• Motor, sensory and coordination disorders
• Alterations in consciousness
Reticular Formation
• Running through brain stem.
• Reticular Activating System- controls wakefulness & alerting mechanisms that prepares a person to react.
Reticular Formation: Pathology
• Sleepiness
Cerebellum
• Connections with:• Vestibular system
• Hypothalamus
• Spinal cord
• Motor cortex
• Through thalamus to
cortical areas
Cerebellum
Cerebellum: Pathology
• Problems with:• Fine motor control problems• Coordination• Postural regulation• Dizziness• Jerky eye movements• Abstract reasoning• Verbal fluency• Visuospatial abilities• Attention• Memory• Emotional modulation• Planning judgement• Processing speed
Limbic System
• Olfactory bulbs
• Hippocampus
• Parahippocampal gyrus
• Cingulate gyrus
• Mammillary bodies
• Amygdala
• Fornix
Limbic System
• Functions: • Emotion
• Behaviour
• Motivation
• Long-term memory
• Olfaction
Limbic System: Pathology
• Including:• Korsakoffs Syndrome
• Schizophrenia
• Bipolar Disorder
• Phobias
• Panic Attacks
Bear in mind while studying:
• Where is the part?
• Are there other names for it?
• What is behind, on top of, next to, in front of it?
• What is it connected to?
• What does it do?
• What happens if it malfunctions?
• How can I test it?
Reading for this Coming Month:• Kolb Chapter 13 (Occipital lobes).
• Kolb Chapter 14 (Parietal lobes) & Kolb pg. 610 - 612 (Parietal and Frontal Lobes and Spatial Behaviour).
• (Recommended: Darby & Walsh, pg. 95 - 100 (Angosia & Apraxia).
• Kolb Chapter 15 (Temporal lobes) & Kolb pg. 602 - 605 (Temporal Lobes and Spatial Behaviour).
• Kolb Chapter 16 (Frontal lobes) & Kolb pg. 612 - 613 (The Frontal Lobes).
• Lezak pg. 46 - 47, Lezak pg. 303 - 304 (Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus)) & Kolb pg. 703 - 704 (Hydrocephalus).
• Lezak, pg. 52 (The hypothalamus).
• Kolb pg. 779 - 780 (Neurochemical aspects of depression). Lezak pg. 341 - 344 (Metabolic and Endocrine Disorders)
• Lezak pg. 49 - 52 (The thalamus).
• Review Kolb pg. 70 - 71 (Basal Ganglia), Lezak, pg. 53 - 54 (The basal ganglia), Lezak pg. 270 - 289 (Subcortical Dementias: Parkinson's Disease/Parkinsonism, Huntington's Disease & Progressive Supranuclear Palsy) & Lezak pg. 289 - 290 (Comparison of the Progressive Dementias).
• Kolb pg. 500 - 503 (Anatomy of the Hippocampus).
• Kolb Chapter 15 (Temporal lobes), Chapter 18 (Learning and Memory), Kolb pg. 449 - 452 (Poor Temporal Memory), Kolb pg. 796 - 802 (Dementia), Lezak pg. 249 - 270 (Dementing Disorders (Mild Cognitive Impairment, Degenerative Disorders, Cortical Dementias (Alzheimer's Disease, Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration & Dementia with Lewy Bodies)).
• Kolb, pg. 67 - 70 (The brainstem), Lezak pg. 47 (The medulla oblongata), Lezak pg. 47 - 48 (The reticular formation) & Lezak pg. 49 (Pons), Review Kolb. pg. 64 Table 3.2 (Cranial nerves).
• Lezak, pg. 49. Kolb pg. 237 - 240 (The Cerebellum and Motor Learning).
• Kolb pg. 71 - 72 (The Limbic System); Lezak pg. 54 - 57 (The Limbic System).
Good luck and keep workingSharon