Central Nervous System (CNS)

Question 1

What is the central nervous system composed of?

Answer 1

Brain

Spinal cord

Question 2

What do the brain and spinal cord lie within?

Answer 2

The skull and the vertebral canal, respectively

Question 3

What are meninges?

Answer 3

Membranous coverings of the brain and spinal cord

Question 4

What are the 3 layers of the meninges

Answer 4

Dura mater
Arachnoid membrane
Pia Mater

Question 5

Which is the most innermost layer of the meninges?

Answer 5

Pia Mater

Question 6

What are the segments of the spinal cord?

Answer 6

Cervical 
Thoracic 
Lumbar 
Sacral 
Coccygeal

Question 7

Describe the spinal cord organisation (white matter and grey matter)

Answer 7

Grey matter: on the inside. Contains neuron cell bodies

White matter: on the outside. Contains nerve axons

Question 8

Describe dorsal horn grey matter

Answer 8

• In dorsal or posterior part of spinal cord
• Location of first order afferent neurons terminals
• Contains cell bodies of second order sensory neurons

Question 9

Describe ventral horn grey matter

Answer 9

• In ventral or anterior part of the spinal cord
• Contains cell bodies of motor neurons
• Motor neuron axons leave cord via ventral nerve roots

Question 10

Why is there relatively more white matter in the cervical and thoracic regions compared to the lumbar and sacral regions?

Answer 10

Arrangement of tracts - axons become bundles moving down the spinal cord

Question 11

Which components make up a reflex pathway?

Answer 11

Sensory neuron
Interneuron (not always)
Motor neuron

Question 12

Why are reflex pathways so fast?

Answer 12

Very fast responses because they don’t require complex processing
Bypasses higher level processing

Question 13

What does the jaw reflex do?

Answer 13

Protects teeth from breaking when we chew on something hard (e.g. popcorn kernel)

Question 14

Describe the arrangement of white matter and grey matter in the brain

Answer 14

White matter on the inside (corpus callous), grey matter on the outside (cerebral cortex)

Question 15

Which regions make up the forebrain?

Answer 15

Cerebrum

Diencephalon

Question 16

What is the midbrain responsible for?

Answer 16

Visual and auditory reflexes

Pain control

Question 17

What is the hindbrain responsible for?

Answer 17

• Vital centres regulating breathing, heart, blood vessels, etc (medulla)
• Control of balance and posture (cerebellum)

Question 18

What is the diencephalon made up of?

Answer 18

Thalamus and hypothalamus

Question 19

What happens in the thalamus?

Answer 19

Sensory processing

Question 20

What role(s) does the hypothalamus have?

Answer 20

• Role in homeostasis e.g. thermoregulation
• Hormone production
• Associated with pituitary gland and its hormones
• Circadian rhythms
• Motivation
• Emotional responses, stress

Question 21

What is the cerebrum (part of the forebrain) important for?

Answer 21

• Sensory and motor functions
• Language
• Memory
• Perceptions
• Sensory/motor integration
• Emotions

Question 22

Which lobe is the somatosensory cortex located in?

Answer 22

Parietal

Question 23

Which lobe is the visual cortex located in?

Answer 23

Occipital

Question 24

Which lobe is the auditory cortex located in?

Answer 24

Temporal

Question 25

Which lobe is the taste cortex located in?

Answer 25

Parietal