The spinal cord

Gray matter
White matter
Spinal Cord meninges

Gross Appearance of the Spinal Cord

Roughly cylindrical in shape
Extends from foramen magnum up to

lower border of first lumbar vertebra in

adult.
Protected by:
Three meninges
Cerebrospinal fluid
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Gross Appearance of the Spinal

Cord
It is fusiformly enlarged where it
gives origin to plexuses, in the :
cervical region

brachial plexus

upper thoracic
lumbar region
Sacral region

lumbosacral plexus
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Gross Appearance of the Spinal

Cord
Conus medullaris:
Inferior tapering off the spinal cord

Filum terminale:
a prolongation of the pia mater from the apex of
spinal cord.
Attaches on the posterior surface of the
coccyx,inferiorly.
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Gross Appearance of the Spinal

Cord
Anterior median fissure:
A deep longitudinal fissure in the
midline, anteriorly.

Posterior median sulcus:

A shallow furrow on the posterior
surface
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Gross Appearance of the Spinal Cord

31 pairs of spinal nerves are attached along the
length of spinal cord, these includes:
anterior or motor roots
posterior or sensory roots

Each root is attached to the cord by a series of

rootlets
Each posterior nerve root possesses a posterior
root ganglion.
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Structure of the Spinal Cord

The spinal cord is composed of:
an inner gray matter
an outer white matter

Gray Matter
On cross section, it is seen as an H-

shaped:
Pillaranterior and posterior gray

columns/horns.
Bargray commissure containing central

canal

Lateral gray column is present in

thoracic and upper lumbar segments.

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Gray Matter
The amount of gray matter is directly
proportional to amount of muscle
innervated at that level.
Thus, its size is greatest within:
Cervical enlargementupper limbs
lumbosacral enlargementlower limbs
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Gray Matter
Structure
Gray matter consists of:
Nerve cells and their processes
Neuroglia
Blood vessels

The nerve cells are multipolar

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Nerve Cell Groups in Anterior Gray

Columns
Most of them are large and multipolar
their axons pass out in anterior roots of
spinal nervesinnervate skeletal muscles.

The smaller ones are also multipolar

Their axons pass out in the anterior roots
of spinal nervesinnervate intrafusal
muscle fibers
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Nerve Cell Groups in Anterior Gray

Columns
They are divided into three columns:
Medial
Central
lateral

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Nerve Cell Groups in Anterior Gray Columns

The medial group

Present in most segments of the spinal

cord.
Responsible for innervating skeletal
muscles of neck and trunk.

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Nerve Cell Groups in Anterior

Gray Columns
The central group
the smallest group
The central group are present in:
Lumbosacral segment of spinal cord
lumbosacral nucleus (L2-S1)
axons have an unknown distribution.

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Nerve Cell Groups in Anterior Gray

Columns
central group
The central group are present in:

Cervical segment of spinal cord

Phrenic nucleus (C3-5)
innervate the diaphragm

Accessory nucleus (C1-5/6)

innervate sternocleidomastoid and trapezius muscles
Axons of these cells form spinal part of accessory
nerve
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Nerve Cell Groups in Anterior Gray Columns

lateral group

Present in:
cervical segment
lumbosacral segment

Responsible for innervating the skeletal

muscles of the limbs

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior

Gray Columns
There are four nerve cell groups in
posterior gray column:
Substantia gelatinosa group
Nucleus proprius group
Nucleus Dorsalis
Visceral Afferent Nucleus
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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior

Gray Columns
Substantia Gelatinosa Group

is situated at the apex of the posterior

gray column
It is present throughout the length of
the spinal cord

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior

Gray Columns
Substantia Gelatinosa Group
It receives:
afferent fibers concerned with pain,
temperature, and touch from the posterior
root
input from descending fibers from
supraspinal levels

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior Gray Columns

Nucleus Proprius

Situated anterior to the substantia

gelatinosa throughout the spinal cord
Constitutes the main bulk of cells in the
posterior gray column

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior Gray Columns

Nucleus Proprius

associated with proprioception, twopoint discrimination, and vibration.

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior Gray Columns

The Nucleus Dorsalis

Situated at the base of the posterior

gray column
Extends from C8-L3/4
Are associated with neuromuscular
and tendon spindles.

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Posterior Gray Columns

Visceral Afferent Nucleus

situated lateral to the nucleus

dorsalis
It extends from T1-L3.
It is associated with receiving
visceral afferent information.

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Lateral

Gray Columns
The other name is intermediolateral group
extends from T1-L2/3
The cells give rise to preganglionic
sympathetic fibers.

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Nerve Cell Groups in the Lateral Gray

Columns
A group of cells from S2-S4 gives rise to
preganglionic parasympathetic fibers

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The Gray Commissure and Central

Canal
Gray commissurethe bar in the

transverse section of the cord

Gray commissure has two parts:
posterior gray commissureposterior to

central canal
anterior gray commissureanterior to central

canal
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The Central Canal of the Spinal Cord

Present throughout the spinal cord
It is filled with cerebrospinal fluid
Lined with the ependyma.

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The Central Canal of the Spinal

Cord
Superiorly it is:
continuous with the central canal of the caudal

half of the medulla oblongata

open

Inferiorly it is:
closed
terminates within the root of the filum

terminale.
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White Matter of the Spinal Cord

It surrounds the gray matter
white color is due to the high proportion of
myelinated nerve fibers
white matter of the spinal cord consists of:
nerve fibers
Neuroglia
blood vessels.
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White Matter of the Spinal Cord

May be divided into three
columns/funiculi:
Anterior
lies between the midline and the point
of emergence of the anterior nerve
roots
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White Matter of the Spinal Cord

May be divided into three columns/funiculi:
Lateral
lies between emergence of anterior nerve
roots and entry of posterior nerve roots

posterior
lies between entry of posterior nerve roots
and posterior midline
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Arrangement of Nerve Fiber Tracts

The spinal tracts are divided into:
Ascending
Descending
Intersegmental

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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

Connective tissue coverings
Surround, protect, and suspend spinal cord
within vertebral canal

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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

Spinal Dura Mater
Is the outermost meningeal membrane
It is continuous with the cranial dura mater
at the foramen magnum
It is separated from the bones of vertebral
canal by an extradural space.

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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

Spinal Dura Mater
narrows at level of the lower border of
vertebra SII
And forms the dural part of the filum
terminale
It is attached to the posterior surface of the
coccyx.
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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

Spinal Dura Mater
Epineurium of the spinal nerves
Tubular sleeves of dura mater that
surrounds the beginning of the spinal
nerves.

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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

Spinal Arachnoid Mater
is a thin delicate membrane against, but
not adherent to, the deep surface of the
dura mater
ends at the level of vertebra SII
It is separated from the pia mater by the
subarachnoid space.
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Subarachnoid Space
Located between the arachnoid and pia
mater
contains CSF
continuous at the foramen magnum with
the subarachnoid space surrounding the
brain.
Inferiorly, it terminates at the level of
the lower border of vertebra SII.

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Subarachnoid Space
It extends further inferiorly than the spinal cord.
spinal cordbetween vertebrae LI and LII
subarachnoid spacelower border of vertebra SII

It is largest in the region inferior to the terminal

end of the spinal cord
Thus, CSF can be withdrawn from the lower lumbar
region without endangering the spinal cord .

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Subarachnoid Space
Arachnoid Trabeculae
Delicate strands of tissue inter-connecting
arachnoid and pia maters, spanning the
subarachnoid space.
They suspend large blood vessels within the
space
And they expand over the vessels to form a
continuous external coat.
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Meninges of the Spinal Cord

Spinal Pia Mater
It is a vascular membrane that firmly
adheres to the surface of the spinal cord
It extends into the anterior median fissure
Reflects as sleeve-like coatings onto
posterior and anterior rootlets and roots

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The Denticulate Ligaments

a longitudinally oriented sheet of pia mater on
each side of the spinal cord
extends laterally from the cord toward the
arachnoid and dura mater
Generally occur between the exit points of
adjacent posterior and anterior rootlets
Position the spinal cord in the center of the
subarachnoid space.
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