The Functions Of The Talamus In The Midbrate Brain

23.The part of the limbic system located in the center of the brain, this structure relays sensory information from the lower part of the brain to the proper areas of the cortex and PROCESSES some sensory information before sending it to its proper area and is called the thalamus.

What is one of the oldest (evolutionarily) structures in the human brain? What does this structure do?

There are three interconnected layers in the brain, the central core, the limbic system, cerebral cortex. The central core has five main regions that help regulate basic life processes, such as breathing, pulse, arousal, movement, balance, and sleep. The first main region in the central core is the thalamus. The thalamus begins the process of interpreting sensory information and determines fundamental propriaties and then forwards the information to the approprIate areas of the cerebral cortex. The second main region is the pons. The pons triggers dreaming and waking from sleep. The next main region is the cerebellum, which coordinates body movements, controls, posture, and maintains equilibrium. The reticular formation is another main region that is responsible for sending signals to the cerebral cortex to attend new stimulation and remain alert even during sleep. Lastly, the medulla is the center for breathing, waking, sleeping, and beating of the heart.

Wolff M, Alcaraz F, Marchand AR, Coutureau E. Functional heterogeneity of the limbic thalamus: From hippocampal to cortical functions. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2015;54:120-130.

- The thalamus is divided along the anterior posterior axis – from front to back by a strip of myelinated fibers called the Internal Medullary Laminal (IML).

Within the subcortical structures, underneath the cortex, are the thalamus, amygdala, caudate, putamen, hippocampus, and cerebellum. These structures provide all sensory and motor responses, emotional and social responses, and support memory recognition.

Together, these are called the Pallidal Striatal Pathways. The direct and indirect pathways work similar to each other. In the direct pathway, the thalamus should be more active so that it can tell the motor cortex to tell our muscles to move. To do this, the motor cortex will excite the striatum through glutamate. The striatum the main place for input in the basal ganglia (Tepper, Koós, & Wilson), now has excited inhibitory neurons which then inhibit the Globus Pallidus internal (GPi) through GABA more than they would have without the striatum excited. The GPi holds down the Thalamus but since the GPi is now inhibited, the thalamus has less restriction. Because of this, the thalamus can now release glutamate to the motor cortex which then tells the muscles to move.

The thalamus is similar to a doctor that diagnoses, or identifies, a patient's disease or sickness. It diagnoses different sensory information that is being transmitted to the brain including auditory (relating to hearing or sound), visual, tactile (relating to touch), and gustatory (relating to taste) signals. After that, it directs the sensory information to the different parts and lobes of the cortex. If this part of the brain is damaged, all sensory information would not be processed and sensory confusion would result.

The thalamus is made up of bilateral egg-shaped nuclei, that in turn form the superolateral walls of the third ventricle; this makes up 80% of the diencephalon. The thalamus is thought of as a kind of hub of information, as it acts as a relay between the cerebral cortex and the different subcortical areas. The function of the thalamus is to input information from the anterior nuclei to the cerebral cortex that help to regulate the visceral and emotional function from the hypothalamus, to pass of instructions from the cerebellum

Between fifty to eighty percent of the population experience symptoms of lower back pain; and while the reasons for such symptoms are vast, a good majority is due to intervertebral disc degeneration due simply to age. As a primary contributor to stress absorption during movement as well as providing the spine with decent mobility, intervertebral discs are composed of an annulus fibrosus outer and nucleus pulposus inner portion. While the outer annulus fibrosus consists of primarily type I collagen, the nucleus pulposus is a gel-like tissue similar to hyaline cartilage composed mainly of type II collagen. Like most other primarily collagen tissues, intervertebral discs are mostly avascular, meaning they repair injury very slowly, if at all;

The diencephalon encloses the third ventricle and is located in the forebrain. The major subdivisions that make up this structure are the thalamus, hypothalamus and the epithalamus. The thalamus is important in which it serves as a sensory and motor station within the brain. It receives sensory information and relays it to the cerebral cortex for interpretation. The thalamus also functions to regulate sleep patterns and control human consciousness and wakefulness. The thalamic nuclei have connections with the cerebral cortex in which they work together to fulfill the role of alertness. The hypothalamus is associated with the autonomic nervous system as well as the endocrine system. In the autonomic system, it serves as an involuntary system

The thalamus, which is located above the brainstem, sorts and distributes data. It sorts sensory information as being visual, tactile, auditory, or gustatory, then sends it to different locations within the cortex.

As humans, we all utilize the organ known as the brain to keep ourselves alive. The brain must be working in optimal condition to ensure our survival and the continuation of our species. Not only is this vital organ necessary to sustain life, it also is used to perform common everyday tasks as well as more complex ones. Similar to all organs, the brain is made up of many different components. The three main sections are the cerebrum, the brain stem, and the cerebellum (New Book of Knowledge, 364). These three divisions interact “to coordinate how we perceive, move, think, and feel” (New Book of Knowledge, 364). The cerebrum is especially important because most functions take place there. Even the cerebrum itself is composed of various portions. There is much to know about the cerebrum, including its functions, composition, and development.

The two pathways of the spinothalamic tract are the lateral and anterior spinothalamic tracts. Fibers of this pathway travel from the skin to the thalamus conveying sensation information of pain, temperature, itch and touch. The information of pain and temperature is carried by the lateral tract while the anterior tract conveys itch and touch. The body sends information through the pseudounipolar neurons to the spinal cord. In the spinal cord these neurons enter the Lissauer’s fasciculus where they synapse to the dorsal horn of the grey matter. Here, most of the neurons decussates to the anterior white commissura on the other side. From there it ascends to the brainstem and synapse on to thalamus. Finally, the thalamus sends projections to

“Today’s science is riveted on our body’s most amazing parts- the brain, its component neural systems, and their genetic instructions.” Neuroanatomy is the study of the anatomy and function of the brain and nervous system. The basic building block of the nervous system and brain is the neuron, or a nerve cell. The neuron is made up of different structures, all playing a vital role in the function of the cell. The first being the dendrites, the bushy, branch extensions that receive the impulse and conduct it towards the rest of the cell. From here the message passes through the axon, a single nerve fiber that carries the impulse away from the cell body. Many axons are covered with a fatty, lipid covering called the myelin sheath. The function