Lecture 3: Forebrain - Thalamus, internal capsule Flashcards
General function of the thalamus
A relay station that monitors and decides how much info goes into the higher regions of the brain.
Draw a labeled thalamus diagram
look at your book
Ventral posterior (laterl and medial) function and arrangement
Take inputs from the trigeminothalamic, medial lemniscal and spinothalamic tracts therefore being important for discrimination of info from the periphery
processes info before it heads to the 1˚ sensory cotex
arranged in a homucular like fashion with the face being in the VPM and everthing else at the VPL
Ventral anterior and ventral lateral nuclei
Deal with motor info from the Globus pallidus, substantia nigra and cerebellum before sending fibres to the 1˚ motor cortex
Medial Nuclear group components and general function
Consists of the medial dorsal nucleus and is separated from the rest by the Intralaminal nuclear group
Involved with integration of sensory input from the frontal and parietal association cortices.
Anterior nuclear group and pape’z circuit?
The anterior thalamic nucleus plays a part in allowing us to bring infor from the hippocampus to the frontal cortex and ‘remember things’.
Also allows us to not go into fight or flight response all the time (Eg. burnt toast scenario)
Metathalamus components and function?
Lateral geniculate body - visual (optic nerve)
medial geniculate body - auditory (Auditory nerve)
Controls the amount of info that passes to the cortex of the brain.
Function of the Pulvinar?
Integration of visual info for the 2˚ visual cortex
Arrangement of the fibres in the internal capsule?
More medial aspects contain sensory firbres coming in and lateral aspects contain motor fibres heading out the the body
The bend is called the knee or GENU and the motor fibres heading to the face can normally be found here.
