DIENCEPHALON

(Thalamus)
The diencephalon
• Development
Clinical correlates of the diencephalon
• Diencephalic/Russell's syndrome
• A lesion of any part of the
diencephalon may result in a deficit
in the function associated to that
component eg. alesion of the
supraoptic nucleus of the
hypothalamus can impair the
production and subsequent release
of vasopressin.
• X-tics include; euphoria, locomotor
hyperactivity, non-anaemic pallor,
hypotension, hypoglycaemia, etc.
• Panhypopituitarism syndrome
• its the deficiency of pituitary
hirmone
• causes include; local impairment of
the gland, dysregulation of the
hypothalamus, iatrogenic insults to
the pituitary, postpartum pituitary
necrosis, traumatic brain injuries,
etc.
• Presentation depends on which
hormone is predominantly deficient
THALAMUS
Thalamus as a relay centre
Thalamic nuclei
They are classified anatomically as;
• Midline nuclei
• Intralaminar nuclei
• Medial mass of nuclei
• Lateral mass of nuclei
• Posterior group of nuclei
or physiologically as;
• Specific sensory relay nuclei
• Specific motor nuclei
• Association/less specific nuclei
• Non-specific nuclei
• Limbic system nuclei
Anatomical
classification
Midline nuclei
A group of small nuclei situated near the
midline
Intralaminar nuclei
Are situated in the medullary septum of the
thalamus
Medial mass of nuclei
Found medial to the septum and comprises
of 2 nuclei ie. anterior and dorso-medial
nuclei
Lateral mass of nuclei
Are found lateral to the septum. Divided into;
dorsal group and ventral group
cont...
The dorsal group comprises of;
• dorsolateral nucleus and
• posterolateral nuclei
The ventral group comprises of;
• ventral anterior nucleus,
• ventral lateral nucleus and
• ventral posterior nucleus, which inturn
consists of 2 parts ie. ventral
posterolateral and ventral posteromedial
nuclei
Posterior group
which are the continuation of the lateral
mass of nuclei. They are;
cont...
• pulvinar nucleus and It receives information from the
• metathalamus which inturn reticular formation,cerebral cortex
consists of 2 structures i.e the and other thalamic nuclei, and
medial and lateral geniculate sends inhibitory signals to other
bodies thalamic nuclei.
Thalamic reticular nucleus
Its a thin layer of neurons covering
the lateral aspects of the thalamus.
its seperated from the thalamus by
the external medullary lamina
Physiological classification
Specific sensory relay nuclei
• They are; the ventral posterior
nucleus, medial geniculate and
lateral geniculate bodies.
• Their function is to send sensory
signals to specific areas of the
cerebral cortex
Specific motor nuclei
• They are; ventral anterior and
ventral lateral nuclei
• They receive signals controlling
motor activities from cerebellum
and corpus striatum and send
them to motor areas in the
cerebral cortex to complete the
feedback system of motor
control mechanism
cont...
Association/less specific nuclei
• They are; dorsolateral, pulvinar,
posterolateral and part of
dorsomedial nuclei.
• They receive input from other
thalamic nuclei and other brain
areas and inturn send
information to secondary areas
of the cerebral cortex.
cont...
Non-specific nuclei
• They are; midline, intralaminar
and reticular nuclei.
• They receive afferents from
reticular formation and cerebral
cortex, then send signals to
scattered areas of the cerebral
cortex. Its involved in arousal
and alertness.
Limbic system nuclei
• They are; anterior and
dorsolateral nuclei.
• They eceive afferents from the
mammillary body and
hippocampus of the temporal
lobe through the fonix and
inturn project them to the
cingulategyrus. Its concerned
with memory.
Blood supply of the thalamus
Thalamic nuclei connections
Thalamic radiation
Collection of nerve fibers
connecting the thalamus and
cerebral cortex
Contains both thalamocortical and
corticothalamic fibers
All these fibers pass through
internal capsule
They are called thalamic
peduncles/thalamic stalks
Cont…
Divided into 4 groups i.e
Anterior/frontal
Superior/centroparietal
Posterior/occipital
Inferior/temporal thalamic stalks
Thalamic peduncles continued…
Anterior/frontal peduncle
Contains mostly motor nerve fibers
and connects the frontal lobe of
cerebral cortex to medial and
lateral thalamic nuclei
Superior/centroparietal peduncle
Contains mainly sensory fibers. It
connects postcentral gyrus of
parietal lobe and adjacent area in
frontal cortex with lateral mass of
thalamic nuclei.
Posterior/occipital peduncle
Contains nerve fibers concerned
with vision. It connects the
occipital lobe of cerebral cortex
with pulvinar and LGB
Inferior/temporal peduncle
Contains nerve fibers concerned
with hearing. It connects the
temporal lobe and insula with
pulvinar and MGB
Functions of the thalamus
 Relay center for sensations  It plays a role in arousal and
especially the ventral alertness reaction
posterolateral nucleus  It the center for reflex activity
 It’s a center for determining the  It’s the center for the integration
affective quality of sensations of motor activity
 It’s a center for processing
sensory information
 It’s a center for the perception
of sexual sensation
Clinical correlates of the thalamus
Thalamic lesion/injuries/damage
Occurs mainly due to thrombosis in
the thalamogeniculate branch of the
posterior cerebral artery
Posteroventral nuclei are affected
thus leading to a condition called
thalamic syndrome
Symptoms of thalamic syndrome
include;
loss of sensation/anesthesia
Astereognosis i.e. loss of ability to
• Recognize a known object by touch
with closed eyes
• Sensory ataxia i.e. incoordination of
voluntary movements
• Thalamic phantom limb i.e. inability to
locate limb with closed eyes
• Anosognosia i.e. denial of existence of
neurological deficit
• Involuntary movements
• Thalamic hand/ athetoid hand
• Involuntary movements