Sensory decussation
Sensory Decussation
Sensory decussation (pronunciation: sen-sor-ee de-koo-say-shun) is a term used in neuroanatomy to describe the crossing over of sensory neural pathways from one side of the body to the other, typically in the brainstem or spinal cord.
Etymology
The term 'decussation' originates from the Latin word 'decussis', meaning 'a ten', which was represented by the Roman numeral X. This is a reference to the X-like crossing pattern that decussating fibers form.
Function
Sensory decussation allows for the contralateral control of sensory perception. This means that the right side of the brain processes sensory information from the left side of the body, and vice versa. This is a fundamental aspect of the organization of the nervous system.
Related Terms
- Decussation: The anatomical term for the action of crossing in the form of an X.
- Pyramidal decussation: The crossing of the motor fibers in the medulla oblongata.
- Contralateral: Pertaining to, or affecting the opposite side.
- Neuroanatomy: The study of the structure and organization of the nervous system.
- Neural pathways: The connection formed by axons that project from neurons to make synapses onto neurons in another location, to enable a signal to be sent from one region of the nervous system to another.
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Sensory decussation
- Wikipedia's article - Sensory decussation
This WikiMD dictionary article is a stub. You can help make it a full article.
Languages: - East Asian
中文,
日本,
한국어,
South Asian
हिन्दी,
Urdu,
বাংলা,
తెలుగు,
தமிழ்,
ಕನ್ನಡ,
Southeast Asian
Indonesian,
Vietnamese,
Thai,
မြန်မာဘာသာ,
European
español,
Deutsch,
français,
русский,
português do Brasil,
Italian,
polski