DESCRIPTIVE AND FUNCTIONAL

ANATOMY OF DIENCEPHALON
PART II
 HYPOTHALAMU
S
• Located below the anterior part of thalamus, between:
-Anterior: the optic chiasm, lamina terminalis
and anterior white commissure,
-Posterior: the cerebral peduncles and interpeduncular fossa;

• Shaped like a funnel that:

-Superiorly: supports the thalamus and borders the third ventricle,
-Inferiorly: gives attachment to the pituitary gland through the
infundibular stalk;

• Laterally: it extends till the internal capsule

• Externally: it is visible only in the rostral part of the interpeduncular

fossa, where it protrudes as prominences: Tuber cinereum,
Eminentia mediana and mamillary bodies.
 INTERNAL STRUCTURE

• Longitudinally is divided in 3 hypothalamic regions:

1. Rostral hypothalamic area/ Anterior /Chiasmatic /Supra
optic área
2. Intermidiate hypothalamic área/ Tuberal /Infundibular
3. Posterior hypothalamic/ Mamillary
• Transversely is divided in 3 hypothalamic zones:
1. Periventricular zone
2. Medial zone
3. Lateral zone
 HYPOTHALAMIC
NUCLEI
• Anterior nuclei:
A. Medial preoptic nucleus: role in sexual behaviour and partner preference
B. Lateral preoptic nucleus:mediates non-rapid eye movement
C. Paraventricular nucleus: maintains systemic osmotic balance through
secretion of vasopressin and oxytocin and controls the endocrine system
through secretion of releasing hormones that stimulate the corresponding
glands
D. Supraoptic nucleus
E. Suparchiasmatic nucleus: main regulator of circaidian rhythms
F. Anterior hypothalamic nucleus: roles in thermoregulation and circaidian
rhythms
G. Lateral hypothalamic nucleus: regulate hunger and satiety
 HYPOTHALAMIC
NUCLEI
• Tuberal nuclei
A. Dorsomedial and ventromedial nuclei:
regulates hunger and satiety
B. Arcuate nucleus: main regulator of the
sexual endocrine secretion
 HYPOTHALAMIC NUCLEI

• Posterior nuclei:
A. Posterior nucleus of hypothalamus:
thermoregulation
B. Mamillary nuclei: involved with
emotions and memory
C. Tuberomamillary nuclei: controls
the global degree of alertness
 SUBTHALAMU
S
• Inferior to the thalamus
• Posterior and lateral to the hypothalamus
• Medial to the internal capsule
 GRAY
MATTER
• The subthalamic nucleus or the Luy’s Body: Through the
ansa lenticularis
-Recieve afferents mainly from Globus pallidus, cerebral cortex and substantia nigra
-Sends efferents to the basal nuclei Through the subthalamic fascicle

-Act as an extrapiramidal nucleus, being thus functionally related to the basal nuclei.
• Zona incerta
• Nuclei of the perizonal fields of Forel :
-Nucleus of the medial field or nucleus of field H of Forel
-Nucleus of the dorsal field or nucleus of field H1 of Forel
-Nucleus of the ventral field or nucleus of field H2 of Forel
 WHITE MATTER

• Represented by the perizonal fields of Forel

1. Medial field H of Forel: formed by the joining of the
fasciculus lenticularis and ansa lenticularis
2. Dorsal field H1 of Forel:Consist of the fasciculus thalamicus
formed by the joining of the previous bundle of fibers with
the dentothalamic and rubrothalamic fascicles
3. Ventral field H2 of Forel: consist in the fasciculus
lenticularisthat passes betwen Zona incerta and subthalamic
nucleus
4. Subthalamic fascicle
EPITHALAM
US
 PINEAL GLAND OR
EPIPHYSIS
• Small, unpaired endocrine gland located on the midline between the two
pulvinars of the thalamus
• attached to the posterior wall of the third ventricle through the narrow stalk
of the pineal gland or habenula.
• Contains pinealocytes
• Receive indirect impulses from the visual pathway and responds by
modifying the melatonine secretion
• Melatonin has inhibitory action on the CNS
• Pineal Gland inhibit secretion og gonadotropins in the pituitary gland
 THE HABENULAR TRIANGLE

• Located in front of the superior colliculus and on the

lateral aspect of the posterior part of the tænia thalami.
• It contains a group of nerve cells termed the ganglion
habenulæ.
• Fibers enter it from the stalk of the pineal body, and
others, forming what is termed the habenular commissure
• Most of its fibers are,however, directed downward and
form a bundle, the fasciculus retroflexus of Meynert
 STRIA
MEDULLARIS

• It is a fiber bundle containing afferent fibers from the septal nuclei,

lateral preoptico-hypothalamic region, and anterior thalamic nuclei to
the habenula.

• It forms a horizontal ridge on the medial surface of the thalamus

• Is found on the border between dorsal and medial surfaces of

thalamus. superior and lateral to habenular trigone.

• It projects to the habenular nuclei, from anterior perforated substance

and hypothalamus, to habenular trigone, to habenular commissure, to
habenular nucleus
 POSTERIOR WHITE
COMISSURE

• Myelinated fibers that run transversely posterior to the upper end

of the cerebral aqueduct, crossing the base of the pineal stalk,
• Most of the fibers originate in the nucleus of posterior comissure
of Darkschewitsch and the intersitial nucleus of Cajal.
• Less fibers originate in the pulvinar of the thalamus, the superior
colliculus of the midbrain or the medial longitudinal fascicle,
• Role in the consencual pupillary light reflex
THE THIRD CEREBRAL
VENTRICLE

• The lateral ventricles are connected to the third ventricle by the

foramen of Monro.
• The third ventricle is situated in between the right and the left
thalamus.
• The anterior surface of the ventricle contains two protrusions:
-Supra-optic recess – located above the optic chiasm.
-Infundibular recess – located above the optic stalk.
• Communicates with:
-Each lateral ventricle via the foramen of Monro
-The fourth ventricle via the aqueduct of Sylvius
 THE FLOOR:

• It extends from the optic chiasm anteriorly to the aqueduct of

Sylvius posteriorly.
• Going from the anterior to posterior, the structures that comprise the
floor of the third ventricle are the:
-Optic chiasm
-Infundibulum of hypothalamus
-Tuber cinereum
-Mammillary bodies
-Posterior perforated substance
-The anterior part of the tegmentum of the midbrain
THE
ROOF:

• It extends from the foramen of Monro anteriorly to the

suprapineal recess posteriorly.
• The roof lies immediately below the body of fornix.
• The roof has for separate layers which include:
-Neural layer
-Tela choroidea (two layers)
-Vascular layer
 THE WALLS

• ANTERIOR WALL
• POSTERIOR WALL
• LATERAL WALL
Optic recess

Infundibular recess
THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION!