Structure of the Nervous System

by Richard H. Hall, 1998

Nervous System Hierarchy
In the last lesson we examined the fundamental building blocks of the nervous system,
the neurons. In this lesson we will greatly broaden our focus to the structure of the
nervous system as a whole. This combined knowledge of the micro- and macroscopic
aspects of the nervous system will aid you in forming a framework in which to consider
the rest of the lessons.
Figure 1 is the hierarchy of the nervous system, which we will consider in more detail in
the remainder of the lesson. As the figure depicts, the two principle divisions of the
nervous system are the central and peripheral. The former consists of the brain and spinal
cord, while the latter is the rest of the nervous system. The brain and spinal cord carry out
the bulk of the complex processing, while the peripheral acts as a sort of buffer between
the central nervous system and the outside world. The peripheral system can be further
subdivided into the somatic and automatic, the former responsible for somatosensation
and conscious/purposeful action, while the latter is responsible for "vegetative"
processes. The autonomic division can also be divided into two systems, the sympathetic
and parasympathetic, which carry out the opposing processes of arousal and relaxation.
We now turn to a more detailed discussion of these components, beginning with the
central nervous system.

Figure 1. Nervous System Hierarchy

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Characteristics of the Central Nervous System

The most fundamental way of categorizing groups of neurons that make up the central
nervous system is as nuclei and tracts. (Figure 2 illustrates the difference between nuclei
and tracts). The nuclei are collections of cell bodies and tracts are pathways consisting of
large groups of axons. Due to their myelin the axons often appear white and the cell
bodies appear gray, thus creating what is often referred to as gray and white matter in
the brain. You can think of the brain as a big collection of nuclei and groups of nuclei
where processing occurs, and tracts which carry the messages from one group of nuclei to
another. Although we will speak of the brain in terms of various "structures" you should
keep in mind that the brain is not neatly divided into sections, rather the "structures" refer
to areas where clumps of nuclei occur, these areas are not neatly partitioned off from
other areas, rather all the structures are interconnected in a myriad of complex patterns.

Figure 2. Nuclei and Tracts in the CNS

The importance of the central nervous system is reflected in the way in which it is
protected. The central nervous system is protected in many ways. First of all the brain sits
inside the skull and the spinal cord is surrounded by a series of vertebrae. Inside these
bony structures lie a series of layers of tissue referred to as meninges. These meninges
surround the brain and spinal cord, and act as a protective lining adding additional layers
of protection. Within the layers of the meninges is a channel referred to as the
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subarachnoid space and, within this space the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) runs. This
fluid is constantly recycled through the meninges and spaces within the brain called
ventricles. The brain in effect "floats" in the cerebral spinal fluid, so that the CSF greatly
reduces the net weight of the brain on the base of the skull, and acts to protect the brain
from blows to the head.
The brain is also protected by the relative impermeability of blood vessels that supply it.
The supply of blood to the brain is a relatively closed system in which most substances
cannot pass from the blood to the brain. While there are pores (openings) in the
capillaries that supply other parts of the body, such pores don't occur in the capillaries of
the brain. This phenomenon is referred to as the blood brain barrier, and acts to further
protect the brain by not allowing harmful substances to enter.
General Organization of the Brain
When all the brain structures and their functions are considered as a whole, a common
theme involving the relationship between them emerges. As we move from the base of
the brain at the top of the spinal cord, to the most outer layer of the brain, in general, the
functions of the structures become more and more complex, with the structures nearest to
the spinal cord responsible for basic survival functions and those toward the outside of
the brain most responsible for complex "human-like" processes. In fact, the brains of
many mammals, such as rats are organized very much like human brains at lower levels,
but differ a great deal when we consider the cortex on the outer surface. With this in
mind, we will discuss briefly the functions of some of the major brain structures
beginning with those at the base of the brain and working our way out.
Structures at the Base of the Brain
At the very base of the brain is a structure referred to as the medulla. The medulla is
responsible for basic survival, and, thus controls heart rate and respiration. In this sense
the medulla is the least important structure for complex processing, and the most
important for survival. As we move up the brain stem we encounter the cerebellum,
which is a large structure in the back of the brain, that looks like a miniature version of
the brain. The cerebellum is important for smooth/coordinated movements, and for the
integration of different sensory information for the purpose of controlling movement.
When we carry out a simple exercise such as picking up a glass, or typing (such as I'm
doing right now!), we rarely consider how complex the interaction of the brain, the
sensory system, the motor system, and the muscles is in carrying out these tasks. Just
consider how difficult it would be to design a robot to carry out these intricate tasks. It is
the cerebellum which is most responsible for controlling these types of smooth
movements. One way to understand the function of the cerebellum is to recognize that
cats have a much larger cerebellum than humans, relative to the size of their brain, and as
a result, can easily carry out tasks such as jumping many times their body height, landing
nimbly, and scampering across an area strewn with stuff, and not touching a thing. It is
their cerebellum that is largely responsible for this ability. Another structure that is
located primarily at the base of the brain is the reticular activating system (RAS). I say
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that the RAS is located "primarily" at the base of the brain because it sends out tracts that
affect many other structures of the brain, and, as a result, the activity of the RAS has a
diffuse effect on the brain as a whole. It is primarily important in attention and
wakefulness. At this moment the amount of attention that you are paying to this lesson, is
to some extent, a function of RAS activity. When the RAS of an animal is lesioned the
animal goes to sleep (but does not die), and when the RAS of a sleeping animal is
stimulated, the animal wakes up.
Structures in the Middle of the Brain
As we move a little farther up into the brain we contact a number of small structures
which play large roles. Among these is the thalamus. Most of the sensory information
that comes from the various senses is funneled through the thalamus. There the
information passes through one of many specialized nuclei and is directed toward the
appropriate site. For example, visual information passes from the eye, down the optic
nerve to the thalamus and then to the visual cortex (Figure 3). For this reason we can
think of the thalamus as a sort of filter and switching station.

Figure 3. Pathway from Eye to Visual Cortex

Also in the middle of the brain is a set of interconnected structures which play an
important role in emotion, and memory. These structures are referred to as the limbic
system. Three of the most important structures in the limbic system are the amygdala, the
hypothalamus, and the hippocampus. It is said that the limbic system, and the
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hypothalamus in particular, is responsible for the four F's: feeding, fleeing, fighting, and
mating. (I would like to say I made this up but, in reality, it's one of the oldest jokes in
neuroscience.)
The amygdala is important in fear and, particularly, in aggression. The amygdala is
important in a type of aggression that aggression researchers refer to as affective
aggression. This type of aggression is illustrated by the Halloween cat with hunched
back and fur standing on end (I like to think of this as the "kitty mohawk"). This type of
aggression is characterized by the fact that it is unpleasant to the aggressor. We can think
of it as aggression due to anger, the fight or flight response. This is not enjoyable to most
of us. Affective aggression is often contrasted with predatory aggression, which is
reinforcing (enjoyable) to the aggressor. For the cat this would involve something like
catching a mouse. For the human this would be exemplified by something like hunting or
fishing.
The hypothalamus is responsible for "motivated" behavior, and, as I mentioned above,
the famous joke about the four F's is often used to describe the functions of the
hypothalamus. Although the hypothalamus is very small it contains specific nuclei which
are very important in feeding, fight/flight, and reproductive behavior. For example, one
nucleus, the septal nucleus, is very important for the control of affective aggression. An
animal with a lesioned septal nucleus is extremely aggressive. When I was in graduate
school I saw two other graduate students fleeing the rat lab where a rat with a septal
lesion was loose! Another example is the ventral medial nucleus which is very
important in the control of feeding behavior. Many general psychology text books
contain a picture of an obese rat which is the result of a lesion of the ventral medial
hypothalamic nucleus.
As we'll discuss in more detail in the lesson on memory, the hippocampus is an
important structure in the storage of certain types of memories. As is the case with many
brain structures, the hippocampus has other roles as well. As part of the limbic system the
hippocampus plays a role in emotion, and, interestingly, is also an important part of the
olfactory (smell) system. This duel role may partly account for the powerful effect of
smell as a memory cue.
The Cerebral Cortex
Surely one of the most interesting brain structures is the very thin outer coating of the
brain which is referred to as the cerebral cortex. The outer covering is very wrinkled,
which acts to greatly increase the cortex surface area, so that it's thin width is somewhat
misleading with regard to its size. The cortex is the most uniquely "human" part of our
brain. This structure is responsible for the highest level types of human function (e.g.,
speech processing). Each half/hemisphere of the cortex can be considered as four lobes,
the frontal, parietal, occipital, and temporal. Within each of these lobes is a relatively
small area of cortex that's responsible for a specific motor or sensory function (Figure 4).

lobe
frontal
parietal
occipital
temporal

primary cortex (within)

motor
somatosensory
visual
auditory

Figure 4. Primary Cortexes and Lobes

Most of the cortex is referred to as the association cortex. The association cortex is
responsible for the most complex processing carried out by this structure. In some sense
we can think of these areas of the brain as the place where "consciousness" resides. It is
here where information from the various sensory modalities is integrated to form the
holistic perceptions that make up our everyday experience. Researchers in the fields of
cognitive psychology and sensation and perception often refer to "labeling" processes
when a person is able to categorize or identify some object. It appears that this area of the
brain is responsible for these types of processes, as exemplified by humans who have
damage to these areas. For example, damage to visual association areas can often result in
the inability to identify objects, though they can be seen.
Characteristics of the Peripheral Nervous System
The peripheral nervous system is the part of our nervous system that, for the most part,
connects the rest of our nervous system with the "real world". So, while this part of the
nervous system does not get the elaborate protection of the central nervous system, and
while it is not responsible for the complex processing carried out by the central nervous
system, it nevertheless plays a crucial role. The same distinction between groups of cell
bodies and axon pathways can be made with peripheral neurons as is the case with the
central nervous system. However, in the peripheral nervous system the groups of cell
bodies are referred to as ganglia and the axons are referred to as nerves. We can
differentiate between two basic types of peripheral nerves by taking into account the
places where they leave or enter the peripheral nervous system. Those that leave from the
base of the brain are referred to as cranial nerves, and those that leave from the spinal
cord are referred to as spinal nerves. Another interesting characteristics of peripheral
nerves is that they most frequently are made up of both sensory neurons, which collect
information from the somatosensory system, and motor neurons, which send information
to the muscles, glands, and internal organs. These dual purpose nerves are called mixed
nerves.

Figure 5. Spinal Nerves

Branches of the Peripheral Nervous System
As Figure 1 illustrates, the peripheral nervous system can be broken down into the
somatic and autonomic nervous systems. The somatic system is responsible for
gathering sensory information from receptors in the periphery and for sending out
"purposeful" motor signals, such as those associated with the conscious/purposeful
movements (e.g., raising your hand). The nerves of the somatic nervous system travel
principally to skeletal muscles and their axons usually travel all the way from the spinal
cord to their targets and synapse directly on them. In contrast, the nerves of the
autonomic nervous system are principally motor nerves responsible for "nonvoluntary"
processes, such as heart rate and respiration. These nerves carry messages primarily to
internal organs and glands. In addition, rather than consisting of one long axon from the
spinal cord to the target, they synapse into some ganglia, and the message is then carried
from the ganglia, via another set of nerves, to the target. The nerves of the autonomic
nervous system that carry messages from the spinal cord to the ganglia are called
preganglionic and those that carry the signal from the ganglia to the targets are called
postganglionic.
Branches of the Autonomic Nervous System
Figure 6 is a table that contrasts the two branches of the autonomic nervous sytstem. As
you can see from the table, although these are two parts of the same branch of the
peripheral nervous system, their effects are very much the opposite. While the
sympathetic is responsible for the "fight or flight" response, which relies on energy
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reserves, the parasympathetic is responsible for relaxation and restoration, which

restores energy reserves. Another difference between the two, not listed in the table is
that the sympathetic tends to work much more as a unit. This is why in stressful (fight or
flight) types of situations many different changes tend to occur at once (e.g., heart rate
increases, respiration increases, eyes dilate, blood flow is routed to skeletal muscles).
This holistic response occurs principally because of the presence of a chain of ganglia
called, aptly, the sympathetic chain. Almost all sympathetic preganglionic nerves pass
through, or synapse on this ganglionic chain.
characteristics
energy
heart rate
respiration
digestion
eye
general effect

division
sympathetic
energy depletion
increase
increase
inhibits
dilates pupil, inhibits tears
preparation for "fight or
flight"

parasympathetic
energy storage
decrease
decrease
stimulates
constricts pupil, stimulates
tears
rest and relaxation

Figure 6. Sympathetic vs Parasympathetic Nervous System