Pons histology (12.5X)

This is a transverse section through the middle part of the pons. Image copyright: University of Oslo, CC BY-NC-ND 4.0.

The image shows a transverse section through the middle part of the pons. It is stained in such a way that the myelin is coloured blue. The neurons themselves are not stained in this section.The pons contains a lot of important structures that you've probably heard of. At first glance it might be overwhelming to try to distinguish them from eachother. But try to point out the following structures:

Reticular formation
Superior cerebellar peduncle
Middle cerebellar peduncle
Medial lemniscus
Pyramidal tracts
Trigeminal motor nucleus
Trigeminal sensory nucleus
Medial longitudinal fasciculus
Pontine nuclei

The pyramidal tracts are aggregations of efferent nerve fibers from the upper motor neurons that travel from the cerebral cortex and terminate either in the spinal cord and are involved in the control of motor functions of the body.

Published August 18th 2022, updated May 10th 2023.