Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Activity-based Training on a Treadmill with Spinal Cord Injured Wistar Rats
Published on: January 16, 2019
Ascending spinal pathways from sexual organs: effects of chronic spinal lesions
1Department of Anatomical Sciences and Neurobiology, University of Louisville School of Medicine, Louisville, KY 40292, USA. chhubs01@louisville.edu
Abstract:
A recent survey of paraplegics indicates that regaining sexual function is of the highest priority for both males and females (Anderson, K.D. (2004) Targeting recovery: priorities of the spinal cord-injured population J. Newrotrauma, 21: 1371-1383). Our understanding of the neural pathways and mechanisms underlying sexual behavior and function is limited at the present time. More studies are obviously needed to direct experiments geared toward developing effective therapeutic interventions. In this chapter, a review of studies on the processing of sensory inputs from the male and female reproductive organs is presented with a review of what is known about the location of ascending spinal pathways conveying this information. The effect of spinal cord injury on sexual function and the problems that ensue are discussed.
Related Concept Videos
Major Somatic Sensory Pathways
Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways
The somatosensory system is divided into three main pathways: the dorsal (or posterior) column-medial lemniscus, spinothalamic (or anterolateral), and spinocerebellar pathways.
The dorsal...
Spinal Nerves: Anatomy
There are 31 bilateral pairs of spinal nerves, each emerging from the spinal cord through the intervertebral foramina—openings between adjacent vertebrae. These nerves are...
Sympathetic Pathways: Sympathetic Chain Ganglia
Spinal Cord: Gross Anatomy
Spinal Cord: Cross-sectional Anatomy
Gray Matter and its Components
Central to the gray matter is...

