What is white matter composed of?

What is white matter composed of?

White matter is found in the deeper tissues of the brain (subcortical). It contains nerve fibers (axons), which are extensions of nerve cells (neurons). Many of these nerve fibers are surrounded by a type of sheath or covering called myelin. It contains the cell bodies of neurons, which give gray matter its color.

What is white matter composed of quizlet?

What is white matter? White matter is composed of bundles of myelinated axons, which connect various gray matter areas of the brain to each other, and carry nerve impulses between neurons.

Which brain tissue contains mostly axons?

White matter areas of the brain mainly consist of myelinated axons, which are long relays that extend out from the soma, and which are whiteish in color due to the relatively high lipid fat content of the myelin protein that sheathes them, These form connections between brain cells, and white matter is typically …

What is the white substance contained in the Fibre cells?

The white matter is white because of the fatty substance (myelin) that surrounds the nerve fibers (axons). This myelin is found in almost all long nerve fibers, and acts as an electrical insulation. This is important because it allows the messages to pass quickly from place to place.

What is the composition of white matter in the central nervous system quizlet?

The white matter composed of myelinated and unmyelinated axons.

What does the white matter consist of why is it white and what might this indicate about regions composed of large amounts of white matter?

Why is white matter called white matter?

White matter refers to areas of the central nervous system (CNS) that are mainly made up of myelinated axons, also called tracts. White matter is named for its relatively light appearance resulting from the lipid content of myelin.

What white matter means?

White matter: The part of the brain that contains myelinated nerve fibers. The white matter is white because it is the color of myelin, the insulation that covers nerve fibers.

What is white matter in brain?

White matter is tissue in the brain composed of nerve fibers. The fibers (called axons) connect nerve cells and are covered by myelin (a type of fat). The myelin is what gives white matter its white color.

What are white matter tracts in the brain?

White matter refers to areas of the central nervous system (CNS) that are mainly made up of myelinated axons, also called tracts. However, the tissue of the freshly cut brain appears pinkish-white to the naked eye because myelin is composed largely of lipid tissue veined with capillaries.

What is the difference between white matter and grey matter?

Main differences White matter comprises mainly of myelinated axons, also called tracts while grey matter few myelinated axons. White matter gets it light color because of the lipid content of myelin while grey matter actually gets it grey pinkish color from capillary blood vessels and neuronal cell bodies.

What is white matter of the nervous system made up of?

White matter refers to areas of the central nervous system (CNS) that are mainly made up of myelinated axons, also called tracts. Long thought to be passive tissue, white matter affects learning and brain functions, modulating the distribution of action potentials, acting as a relay and coordinating communication between different brain regions.

What does white matter in the brain and spinal cord consist of?

White matter disease is the wearing away of tissue in the largest and deepest part of your brain due to aging. This tissue contains millions of nerve fibers, or axons, that connect other parts of the brain and spinal cord and signal your nerves to talk to one another.

What is the function of white matter?

White matter is the commonly used term for the myelinated axons that provide connections between neurons, or grey matter. The main function of white matter in the brain is to regulate the electrical signals in axons.