What is the difference between fasciculus gracilis and fasciculus cuneatus?
Fasciculus gracilis carries sensory information associated with the DCML pathway from the lower extremities and terminates and synapses at the nucleus gracilis in the caudal medulla. On the other hand, fasciculus cuneatus carries sensory information associated with the DCML pathway from the upper extremities.
Which two regions or structures are connected by the fasciculus cuneatus?
The dorsal column is separated into two component tracts, the fasciculus gracilis that contains axons from the legs and lower body, and the fasciculus cuneatus that contains axons from the upper body and arms.
What is the cuneate fasciculus?
the lateral portion of either of the dorsal columns of the spinal cord, which is wedge-shaped in transverse section. It is composed of ascending fibers that terminate in the nucleus cuneatus of the medulla oblongata.
What happens if the fasciculus cuneatus is damaged?
Damage to the dorsal columns (fasciculus gracilis and cuneatus), bilaterally, causes the absence of light touch, vibration, and position sense, bilaterally, from the neck down (below the lesion level).
Where are the fasciculus gracilis and the fasciculus Cuneatus located?
The fasciculus gracilis (containing ascending fibers from the lower body) is located medially, whereas the fasciculus cuneatus (containing ascending fibers from the upper body) is located laterally in the dorsal column.
What are the gracile and cuneate tubercles?
The gracile nucleus, along with the cuneate nucleus, is a part of the dorsal column medial lemniscus pathway (DCML). The cuneate fasciculus carries information from T6 and above and ascends into the cuneate nucleus to form the cuneate tubercle. These tubercles appear as bumps on the dorsal part of the medulla.
Is the cuneate fasciculus ascending or descending?
The direct dorsal column pathway includes two large ascending pathways, the gracile and cuneate fasciculi.
What does Cuneatus mean?
wedge-shaped (as an adjective)