Central Nervous System

Synonyms

CNS

Description

The central nervous system is that part of the nervous system that consists of the brain and spinal cord. The central nervous system (CNS) is one of the two major divisions of the nervous system. The other is the peripheral nervous system (PNS) which is outside the brain and spinal cord [Source: Brenda].

Structure

  • Anatomical System 4331 ➥
    • anatomical site 223 ➥
      • head and neck
      • thorax 1 ➥
        • thoracic wall
      • abdomen
      • pelvis
      • perineum
      • upper limb
      • lower limb
      • whole body 30 ➥
      • adipose tissue 190 ➥
      • mucosa
      • spine 2 ➥
    • cardiovascular system 62 ➥
      • heart 40 ➥
        • atrium
        • ventricle 2 ➥
        • endocardium
        • myocardium
        • pericardium
        • cardiac valve
        • cardiac conducting system
      • artery 15 ➥
        • aorta 2 ➥
        • arterial intima 5 ➥
        • arterial media
        • arterial adventitia
        • carotid artery
        • coronary artery
      • vein 1 ➥
        • venous intima 1 ➥
        • venous media
        • venous adventitia
      • capillary
    • respiratory system 187 ➥
      • nose
      • sinus
      • larynx 1 ➥
      • trachea
      • bronchus
      • lung 175 ➥
      • pleura
      • diaphragm
    • hematological system 385 ➥
    • lymphoreticular system 2 ➥
      • lymph
      • lymph node
      • tonsil
      • spleen
    • alimentary system 123 ➥
    • urogenital system 301 ➥
      • urinary system 132 ➥
        • kidney 130 ➥
          • nephron 7 ➥
            • renal corpuscle
              • glomerus
            • renal tubule 6 ➥
              • renal proximal convoluted tubule
              • renal distal convoluted tubule
              • loop of Henle
              • renal collecting duct
          • renal vasculature 5 ➥
          • glomerulus 5 ➥
        • ureter
        • bladder 1 ➥
        • urethra
      • reproductive system 169 ➥
    • endocrine system 10 ➥
      • endocrine pancreas
        • islets of Langerhans
      • pineal gland 1 ➥
      • pituitary gland 1 ➥
      • thyroid
      • parathyroid
      • adrenal gland 2 ➥
        • adrenal cortex
        • adrenal medulla
    • musculoskeletal system 529 ➥
    • integument system 1602 ➥
    • nervous system 767 ➥
      • central nervous system 737 ➥
        • brain 734 ➥
          • cerebrum 334 ➥
            • cerebral cortex 334 ➥
              • frontal lobe 84 ➥
                • prefrontal cortex 3 ➥
              • parietal lobe 78 ➥
              • temporal lobe 31 ➥
              • occipital lobe
              • visual
              • insula
              • olfactory bulb
              • anterior olfactory nucleus
              • lateral olfactory stria
              • medial olfactory stria
              • olfactory tubercle
              • primary olfactory cortex
              • secondary olfactory cortex
              • hippocampus 137 ➥
              • parahippocampal gyrus
            • basal nuclei
          • hypothalamus 1 ➥
            • preoptic nucleus
            • supraoptic nucleus
            • suprachiasmatic nucleus
            • paraventricular nucleus
            • infundibular nucleus
            • anterior nucleus
            • dorsomedial nucleus
            • ventromedial nucleus
            • lateral nucleus
            • posterior nucleus
            • premamillary nucleus
            • tuberomamillary nucleus
            • medial mamillary nucleus
            • lateral mamillary nucleus
            • lateral tuberal nucleus
          • brain stem 12 ➥
            • midbrain 2 ➥
              • crus cerebri
              • colliculi
              • substantia nigra 2 ➥
              • red nucleus
              • periaqueductal grey matter
              • oculomotor nucleus
              • trochlear nucleus
              • mesencephalic trigeminal nucleus
            • pons 10 ➥
              • vestibular nuclei
              • cochlear nuclei
              • superior olivary nucleus
              • trapezoid nucleus
              • nucleus of the lateral lemniscus
              • abducent nucleus
              • facial nucleus
              • salivatory nuclei
              • trigeminal nucleus
          • cerebellum 14 ➥
            • cerebellum cortex
            • cerebellum nuclei
          • tract 1 ➥
          • ventricular system
          • cerebrospinal fluid
          • meninges
          • white matter 5 ➥
          • grey matter 2 ➥
          • blood brain barrier 4 ➥
        • spinal cord
      • peripheral nervous system 25 ➥
        • visual apparatus 17 ➥
          • globe
          • eyelid 1 ➥
          • lacrimal gland
          • conjunctiva
          • cornea
          • sclera
          • lens 6 ➥
          • vitreous humor 1 ➥
          • iris
          • ciliary body
          • choroid
          • retina
          • optic nerve
          • trabecular meshwork
        • auditory apparatus 8 ➥
          • external ear
          • middle ear
          • tympanum
          • auditory tube
          • auditory ossicle
          • internal ear 8 ➥
            • osseous labyrinth 8 ➥
              • cochlea 8 ➥
                • spiral organ of Corti
              • semicircular canal
              • vestibule
            • membranous labyrinth
        • olfactory apparatus
        • peripheral nerve
        • ganglion
        • sympathetic chain
    • immune system 98 ➥

Changes associated with this tissue

Due to the potentially large amount of high-throughput molecular changes these have been excluded below. You can view the full list of 740 changes through the filter results page.

Physiological (51) View on results page

Accumulation of extracellular neuritic plaques Accumulation of neuromelanin in dopaminergic nigral neurons Altered brain mitochondrial metabolism Axon loss Brain matter volume declines Brain volume decrease Brain volume decreases in a regional-specific way Calcium binding capacity decreases in neurons Cerebral blood flow and glucose utilization are reduced Cerebral spinal fluid amount increases Cortical plasticity decreases Decrease in mitochondrial content and oxidative metabolism in cells Degeneration of dopamine neurons and receptors Demyelination Dendrite regression, reduction in dendrite length Depolarization of mitochondria Down regulation of calcium clearance from nerve cells EEG alterations during auditory test Frequency of mitochondrial DNA deletions increases with age Frequency of somatic mitochondrial mutations increases with age Glial cell number Global neuron loss Gray matter volume decreases Increased bilateral anterior frontal activity in memory interference tests Increased rhinal cortex activity and functional connectivity in tests for verbal familiarity Increased sustained activity in tests of working memory Increased transient activity in non-spatial auditory working memory test Intracellular glutathione content decreases Layer-specific dendritic regression of pyramidal cells Leukoaraiosis Lipid biosynthesis decreases Localized increases and decreases in synaptic transmission Mean diffusivity increases and water diffusion anisotropy decreases Medial temporal activation during encoding and retrieval of memory is reduced Mutations in mitochondrial DNA accumulate Neural stem cell pool declines Neurofibrillary tangles and Lewy bodies in neurons Neurogenesis is reduced Neuronal soma shrinks in size Neurotransmitter and neuro receptor concentrations are altered Permeability increases with age Prefrontal cortex activation during learning is reduced Prolongation of calcium signals in nerve cells Reaction time for a visually paced simple motor task increases with age Receptor expression alterations Reduced hippocampal activity and functional connectivity in tests for verbal familiarity Selective increase in oxidative damage and decrease in antioxidant function during aging in the substantia nigra Sensitivity of HPA axis is impaired Synaptic density slightly decreases at advanced ages Viscoelastic modulus of brain tissue decreases White matter volume decreases

Psychological (22) View on results page

Molecular (6; 652 in total) View on results page

Changes from high-throughput approaches are excluded but can be viewed on the results page.

Pathological (9) View on results page