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- Glossary
Visual pathway
The visual pathway refers to the network of nerve cells involved in visual perception. In mammals, it runs from the retinal ganglion cells in the eye – as the optic nerve to the optic chiasm, then as the visual tract – via the only switching point in the lateral geniculate nucleus to the primary visual cortex.
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- Glossary
Ventrolateral nuclei
The lower lateral nucleus group of the thalamus is responsible for motor function (movement). It receives inputs from the cerebellum and basal ganglia and has outputs to motor and premotor areas of the cerebral cortex.
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- Glossary
Parvocellular
"Parvus" means "small." In the lateral geniculate nucleus, the switching station for visual stimuli in the thalamus, the outer four layers are called parvocellular because, unlike the magnocellular cell layers, they have small cell bodies. The parvocellular system transmits information for the perception of color and fine details.
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- Glossary
Pallidum
The "pale nucleus" (pallidum = pale) is classified as part of the basal ganglia due to its functional integration and, in terms of evolutionary development, belongs to the telencephalon. It has an inner (medial) and an outer (lateral) segment, which mainly transmit inhibitory impulses to modulate the activity of other parts of the basal ganglia and thalamus.
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- Glossary
Visual system
The visual system is the part of the nervous system that processes visual information. It primarily comprises the eye, the optic nerve, the optic chiasm, the optic tract, the lateral geniculate nucleus, the optic radiation, the primary visual cortex, and the visual association cortices.
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- Glossary
Optic tract
The optic tract refers to the optic nerve after half of the fibers have crossed sides at the optic chiasm. However, it still consists of the axons (long fiber-like extensions) of the retinal ganglion cells. Most of the optic tract ends in the lateral geniculate nucleus, while others end in the superior colliculi, among other places.
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- Glossary
Visual radiation
The optic radiation – also known as Gratiolet's optic radiation after its discoverer – distributes visual impulses from the lateral geniculate nucleus to the comparatively very large primary visual cortex.
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- Basics
- Anatomy
The Occipital Lobe
The sophisticated interconnection of the occipital lobe demonstrates just how complex the visual process is.
28.08.2025
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- Discover
- Milestones
Hubel and Wiesel: Cutting the Lawn with Nail Scissors
Hubel and Wiesel worked diligently to establish fundamental knowledge about visual information processing.
26.09.2012
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- Basics
- Anatomy
The Epithalamus
Probably not the seat of the soul after all: the pineal gland in the epithalamus.
09.10.2025
