Cerebrum: Basal Nuclei and Limbic System (Nursing)

00:01 The cerebrum also contains several different nuclei. These are referred to as the basal nuclei.

00:10 These are paired masses of gray matter that are found in each of our cerebral hemispheres.

00:18 The basal nuclei include the globus pallidus nuclei, the putamen nuclei, and the caudate nuclei.

00:28 The globus pallidus and the putamen together form what's known as the lentiform nucleus and this lentiform nucleus and the caudate nuclei together form what's known as the corpus striatum.

00:45 These nuclei are important for receiving input from the cerebral cortex and providing output to the motor portions of the cerebral cortex by way of the thalamus.

00:58 These also regulate the initiation and termination of our movements, as well as, our subconscious muscle contractions such as the arms swinging when running or jogging, as well, when you think about it, if a person tells you a joke and you subconsciously start to laugh without forcing yourself to laugh, this is also controlled by those basal nuclei.

01:26 The next system in the brain is going to be the limbic system.

01:32 This is less defined because it's in different parts of the brain.

01:37 It encircles the upper part of the brain stem, goes around the corpus callosum as well as contains parts of the inner border of the cerebrum, and the floor of the diencephalon.

01:51 It is comprised of anterior and medial groups of thalamic nuclei, as well as, mammillary bodies of the hypothalamus.

02:01 The limbic system also includes the amygdala which is a group of neurons that are close to the tail of the caudate nucleus of the basal nuclei.

02:15 In the cerebrum, it is comprised of these three structures and the entire part that's a part of the cerebrum is referred to as the limbic lobe.

02:28 The limbic system is referred to as our emotional brain and that is because it plays a primary role in our emotions.

02:38 It can affect our emotions for pain, pleasure, affection, and anger.

02:45 A very important structure for these is the amygdala and it has been shown that damage to the amygdala can cause people to not be able to recognize fearful expressions or be able to express fear when they should.

03:04 So, for example, if there are people running and everyone seems to be afraid of something, people with damage to the amygdala don't really quite understand what's going on and understand that they may be in danger.

03:18 And as well, when a person with damage to the amygdala does feel fear, they don't actually show it outwardly. They don't show it on their face.

03:29 Also, another important function of the limbic system is going to be our memory function.