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Grey matter is distinguished from white matter in that it contains numerous cell bodies and relatively few myelinated axons, while white matter contains relatively few cell bodies and is composed chiefly of long-range myelinated axons. [1] The colour difference arises mainly from the whiteness of myelin. In living tissue, grey matter actually ...
The neocortex consists of the grey matter, or neuronal cell bodies and unmyelinated fibers, surrounding the deeper white matter (myelinated axons) in the cerebrum. This is a very thin layer though, about 2–4 mm thick. [6] There are two types of cortex in the neocortex, the proisocortex and the true isocortex.
In humans, both LGNs have six layers of neurons (grey matter) alternating with optic fibers (white matter). The LGN receives information directly from the ascending retinal ganglion cells via the optic tract and from the reticular activating system .
The most convincing explanation for this is that individual neurons die, leading to the loss of both their cell bodies (i.e. gray matter) and their myelinated axons (i.e. white matter). The gray matter changes can be observed via both gray matter density and gyrification.
The white matter is located outside of the gray matter and consists almost totally of myelinated motor and sensory axons. “Columns” of white matter carry information either up or down the spinal cord. Within the CNS, nerve cell bodies are generally organized into functional clusters, called nuclei. Axons within the CNS are grouped into tracts.
White matter is composed of bundles, which connect various grey matter areas (the locations of nerve cell bodies) of the brain to each other, and carry nerve impulses between neurons. Myelin acts as an insulator, which allows electrical signals to jump , rather than coursing through the axon, increasing the speed of transmission of all nerve ...
A neuron (also known as a neurone or nerve cell) is an excitable cell in the nervous system that processes and transmits information by electrochemical signaling. Neurons are the core components of the brain, spinal cord, and peripheral nerves.
White matter, which is mostly composed of myelinated axons (hence its white color) and glial cells, is generally not considered to be a part of the neuropil. [ citation needed ] Neuropil (pl. neuropils) comes from the Greek: neuro , meaning "tendon, sinew; nerve" and pilos , meaning "felt". [ 2 ]