Human A&PBIO 304 · American River College ← Week 05 pre-work

BIO 304 · Week 05 · Interactive Workbook

CNS Organization: Brain & Spinal Cord

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Part 1 of 4 · Recall

Fill in the blanks

Type the term that completes each statement, using the word bank. Pull it from memory first.

Word bank

Pia materMedullaCerebrumFrontalLateral horn (T1-L2)OccipitalDorsal hornBuilt byBrainstemThalamusFlowCentral canalPineal gland (epithalamus)31 pairsCauda equina

  1. largest; cognition, sensation, voluntary movement
  2. midbrain + pons + medulla; vital reflexes
  3. voluntary motor (precentral gyrus), executive function, personality, Broca speech
  4. vision
  5. sensory relay station (except smell)
  6. melatonin; circadian rhythm
  7. cardiac, vasomotor, respiratory centers; decussation of pyramids
  8. of spinal nerves exit through intervertebral foramina
  9. lumbar/sacral nerve roots below L1/L2
  10. sensory input from afferent neurons
  11. sympathetic preganglionic neurons
  12. CSF down the middle
  13. thin, follows every contour of brain
  14. lateral → 3rd ventricle → cerebral aqueduct → 4th ventricle → subarachnoid space → arachnoid villi → venous blood
  15. tight junctions between brain capillary endothelial cells + astrocyte feet

Define it: high-yield vocabulary

Write a clear definition in your own words for each term.

  1. Cerebrum
  2. Diencephalon
  3. Brainstem
  4. Cerebellum
  5. Thalamus
  6. Hypothalamus
  7. Gray matter
  8. White matter
  9. Meninges
  10. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
  11. Blood-brain barrier
  12. Cauda equina

Part 2 of 4 · Anatomy lab

Draw and label

Box A. Brain in lateral view

Directions

  1. Draw the outline of a brain in left lateral view. Show the convoluted surface (gyri and sulci).
  2. Divide the cerebrum into four lobes with dashed lines: Frontal (anterior, in front of the central sulcus), Parietal (behind the central sulcus), Temporal (below the lateral sulcus), Occipital (most posterior).
  3. Label the central sulcus (separates frontal from parietal) and the lateral sulcus (separates temporal).
  4. Draw the cerebellum below the occipital lobe.
  5. Draw the brainstem extending down from the center: midbrain, pons, medulla oblongata. Label each.
  6. Inside the frontal lobe, label the primary motor cortex (just anterior to the central sulcus). Inside the parietal lobe, label the primary somatosensory cortex (just posterior to the central sulcus).
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Box B. Spinal cord cross-section with meninges

Directions

  1. Draw a round cross-section of the spinal cord.
  2. Inside, draw a butterfly (H) shape representing gray matter. Label dorsal horn (top), ventral horn (bottom), and central canal (small hole in the middle of the H).
  3. Around the gray matter, draw the white matter (it surrounds the H). Label.
  4. Wrap the cord in three meningeal layers. Innermost: pia mater (tight on the cord). Middle: arachnoid mater (with subarachnoid space below it where CSF flows). Outermost: dura mater (thick).
  5. Label all three layers and the subarachnoid space.
  6. Outside the dura, draw vertebral bone (the spinal cord sits inside the vertebral canal).
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Structures to label

Label each on your drawing.

  1. Frontal lobe
  2. Parietal lobe
  3. Temporal lobe
  4. Occipital lobe
  5. Central sulcus
  6. Lateral sulcus
  7. Cerebellum
  8. Midbrain
  9. Pons
  10. Medulla oblongata
  11. Primary motor cortex
  12. Primary somatosensory cortex
  13. Dorsal horn
  14. Ventral horn
  15. Central canal
  16. Gray matter
  17. White matter
  18. Pia mater
  19. Arachnoid mater
  20. Dura mater
  21. Subarachnoid space

Part 3 of 4 · Physiology lab

Reason it through

A. Map the function to the brain region

1. Voluntary control of skeletal muscle in the right hand.
2. Conscious sensation of touch from the left foot.
3. Visual processing of the scene in front of you.
4. Producing fluent, grammatical speech.
5. Understanding spoken language.
6. Balance, posture, and coordination of fine motor movements.
7. Regulation of heart rate, breathing, and blood pressure (autonomic 'vital signs' centers).

B. Synthesis

1. A patient has a stroke that damages the right primary motor cortex in the region controlling the hand. Predict the side and pattern of weakness, and explain why it's on that side using the concept of decussation.
2. Bacterial meningitis is an inflammation of the meninges. Explain why a lumbar puncture (collecting CSF from below the spinal cord) is the diagnostic test, and which meningeal space the needle enters.
3. A car accident causes a spinal cord injury at the C7 level. Predict which functions are lost (motor, sensory, autonomic) and which are preserved, and explain why an injury one level higher would be much more dangerous.

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