Summary: The Two Important Motor Obstacles

The brain has two important motor pathways. These pathways are the motor cortex and the somatosensory cotex (Carlson & Birkett, 2017). The motor cortex of the brain is made up of the outer grey matter. Each side of the cortex has areas that represent particular regions of our body. Signals from these areas will travel to the particular areas of the body to preform specific movements. The thalamus is a structure that is very important in movement, as it is the relay station. The motor pathways are divided into two main areas, the lateral pathway and the anteriormedial pathway.
The lateral pathway is responsible for voluntary movements (Carlson & Birkett, 2017). There are three main tracts involved in the lateral pathway. The lateral …show more content…
The anterior corticospinal tract, which is voluntary, but not part of the lateral pathways, control the proximal muscles such as the shoulder. The rubrospinal tract is the third tract. Within sections of the spinal cord there are designated tracts that correspond to aforementioned tracts, among many others. When there is a desired voluntary movement, a neuron in the corresponding area of the corresponding area of the motor cortex will be activated. The motor cortex is made up of three parts: the primary motor cortex the pre-motor area and the supplementary motor area. The primary motor cortex is one of the principal brain areas involved in motor function. The primary motor cortex (M1) lies along the precentral gyrus, which could cause paralysis or muscle weakness when damaged. The primary motor cortex also controls muscle contractions on the same side of the body. The premotor cortex lies anterior to the primary motor cortex. It is involved in learning and performing movements that are guided by a …show more content…
At this point it will cross over to the lateral cortical tract if it is part of the lateral pathway, but if it was part of the anterior spinal tract it would pass through the anterior spinal tract. The signal will communicate with a second neuron on the ventral horn of the spinal cord. The first neuron is known as the upper motor neuron and is considered part of the lateral neural pathway. The second neuron is targets the muscle and is considered a lower motor neuron. The rubdrospinal tract is part of the lateral pathway and is for voluntary control of larger mucles. The rubrospinal pathway begins in an area of he midbrain called the red nucleus. It travels downward, crossing over and passing the pons and medulla. It then lands on the rubospinal tract of the spinal cord before connecting with the lower motor neuron. Damage to the corticalspinal region would result in paralysis in the opposite or contra lateral side. Additional motor functions are controlled by the tectospinal, recticular spinal and the vestibular spinal tracts. These are responsible for posture and balance, and also includes the cerebellum which has not been mentioned. When it is damaged, people’s movements become jerky, erratic, and uncoordinated. Damage to the flocculonodular lobe or the vermis causes disturbances in posture and balance. Damage to the intermediate zone produces deficits in movements