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Related Concept Videos

Somatosensation01:33

Somatosensation

The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.
Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex01:23

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

The somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobes is crucial for interpreting sensory data such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. The somatosensory cortex, situated in the parietal lobes, plays a vital role in interpreting sensory information like touch, temperature, and proprioception—awareness of body position. This specialized brain region features an organized structure wherein neurons at the top primarily process sensations originating from the lower body. In contrast, those at the...
Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex01:14

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.
Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways01:29

Overview of Somatic Sensory Pathways

Somatic sensory or somatosensory pathways refer to the neural pathways that carry information related to touch, pressure, pain, temperature, and proprioception from the skin, muscles, tendons, and joints to the brain. These pathways involve several stages of processing and integration of sensory information.
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 Cord: Cross-sectional Anatomy01:16

Spinal Cord: Cross-sectional Anatomy

The cross-sectional anatomy of the spinal cord offers a detailed view of its complex structure and function within the central nervous system. At the core of the spinal cord lies the gray matter, characterized by its butterfly or "H"-shaped appearance in cross-section. This central region is enveloped by white matter, with the overall structure divided into symmetrical halves by the dorsal median sulcus and the ventral median fissure.
Gray Matter and its Components
Central to the gray matter is...
Major Somatic Sensory Pathways01:28

Major Somatic Sensory Pathways

Sensory impulses related to touch, pressure, vibration, and proprioception from various body parts, such as the limbs, trunk, neck, and posterior head, travel to the cerebral cortex through the posterior column-medial lemniscus pathway. The pathway’s name derives from the two white-matter tracts that convey the impulses: the spinal cord's posterior column and the brainstem's medial lemniscus. First-order sensory neurons extend their axons into the spinal cord, forming the posterior columns...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 23, 2026

Rapid Golgi Stain for Dendritic Spine Visualization in Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex
04:58

Rapid Golgi Stain for Dendritic Spine Visualization in Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex

Published on: December 3, 2021

Dendritic spine density in multisensory versus primary sensory cortex.

H Ruth Clemo1, M Alex Meredith

  • 1Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Virginia Commonwealth University, School of Medicine, Richmond, Virginia, USA. rclemo@vcu.edu

Synapse (New York, N.Y.)
|April 11, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Multisensory neurons do not have more dendritic spines than primary sensory neurons. Spine density in the ferret brain is not determined by the number of sensory modalities converging on a neuron.

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Last Updated: May 23, 2026

Rapid Golgi Stain for Dendritic Spine Visualization in Hippocampus and Prefrontal Cortex
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Published on: December 3, 2021

Analysis of Dendritic Spine Morphology in Cultured CNS Neurons
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Analysis of Dendritic Spine Morphology in Cultured CNS Neurons

Published on: July 13, 2011

Dendritic Spine Quantification Using an Automatic Three-Dimensional Neuron Reconstruction Software
07:45

Dendritic Spine Quantification Using an Automatic Three-Dimensional Neuron Reconstruction Software

Published on: September 27, 2024

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Cellular Biology
  • Sensory Processing

Background:

  • Neuronal dendritic spines receive sensory inputs, driving spiking responses to stimuli.
  • Primary sensory cortices have 0.5-1.4 dendritic spines/μm.
  • Higher-order cortices integrate multisensory inputs onto single neurons.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how dendritic spines are apportioned in multisensory neurons.
  • To determine if spine density increases with sensory modality convergence.

Main Methods:

  • Examined Golgi-stained ferret neurons from primary auditory (A1), somatosensory (S1), and multisensory (LRSS, PPr) areas.
  • Measured dendritic spine density (spines/μm) in pyramidal neurons (layers 2-3 and 5-6).
  • Utilized light microscopy across three animals.

Main Results:

  • Primary sensory areas A1 and S1 showed similar spine densities (1.27 ± 0.3 and 1.14 ± 0.3 spines/μm, respectively).
  • Multisensory areas LRSS and PPr had lower average spine densities (0.98 ± 0.3 and 1.04 ± 0.3 spines/μm, respectively).
  • Spine density did not correlate with the number of converging sensory modalities.

Conclusions:

  • Dendritic spine density in a cortical area is influenced by factors other than sensory convergence.
  • The hypothesis that multisensory areas have double the spine density of primary sensory areas was not supported.
  • Neuronal structure is adapted for function through mechanisms beyond simple input summation.