The neural tube develops from the ectoderm of the embryo.
Correct Answer
True
True. The neural plate is a thickened region of ectoderm that folds inward and closes to form the hollow neural tube, which becomes the brain and spinal cord.
Category: Embryonic Development
Question 2
The mesencephalon divides into two secondary vesicles during brain development.
Correct Answer
False
False. The mesencephalon stays undivided and becomes the midbrain. The prosencephalon and rhombencephalon are the primary vesicles that each split into two, giving five secondary vesicles in total.
Category: Embryonic Development
Question 3
Spina bifida is a birth defect caused by incomplete closure of the neural tube.
Correct Answer
True
True. Spina bifida occurs when the neural tube fails to close completely, usually in the region that forms the spinal cord. Severity ranges from a mild vertebral defect to protrusion of meninges and spinal nerves.
Category: Embryonic Development
Question 4
The central sulcus separates the temporal lobe from the frontal and parietal lobes.
Correct Answer
False
False. The lateral sulcus separates the temporal lobe from the frontal and parietal lobes. The central sulcus separates the frontal lobe from the parietal lobe.
Category: Cerebrum and Diencephalon
Question 5
The postcentral gyrus of the parietal lobe contains the primary somatosensory cortex.
Correct Answer
True
True. The postcentral gyrus lies just behind the central sulcus and receives touch, pain, temperature and body position information from the opposite side of the body.
Category: Cerebrum and Diencephalon
Question 6
The caudate nucleus and the putamen together are called the globus pallidus.
Correct Answer
False
False. The caudate nucleus and putamen together form the striatum. The globus pallidus is a separate component of the basal nuclei that receives input from the striatum.
Category: Cerebrum and Diencephalon
Question 7
The vagus nerve carries autonomic motor fibers to organs of the thoracic and upper abdominal cavities.
Correct Answer
True
True. The vagus nerve, cranial nerve X, wanders well beyond the head and neck to supply the heart, lungs and much of the digestive tract with autonomic fibers.
Category: Peripheral Nervous System
Question 8
The diencephalon forms the walls of the fourth ventricle.
Correct Answer
False
False. The diencephalon, which includes the thalamus and hypothalamus, surrounds the third ventricle. The fourth ventricle lies between the cerebellum and the pons and upper medulla.
Category: Cerebrum and Diencephalon
Question 9
The pons is the most inferior part of the brain stem and is continuous with the spinal cord.
Correct Answer
False
False. The medulla oblongata is the most inferior part of the brain stem and continues into the spinal cord at the foramen magnum. The pons lies between the midbrain and the medulla.
Category: Brain Stem and Cerebellum
Question 10
The reticular formation, a network of neurons running through the brain stem, helps regulate sleep and wakefulness.
Correct Answer
True
True. The reticular formation extends through the midbrain, pons and medulla and influences arousal, alertness and the sleep-wake cycle.
Category: Brain Stem and Cerebellum
Question 11
The posterior horn of the spinal cord gray matter contains the cell bodies of somatic motor neurons.
Correct Answer
False
False. The posterior horn receives and processes sensory input entering through the dorsal root. Cell bodies of somatic motor neurons lie in the anterior horn.
Category: Spinal Cord
Question 12
The dorsal root of each spinal nerve carries sensory axons into the spinal cord.
Correct Answer
True
True. Sensory axons enter the cord through the dorsal root, and the cell bodies of these sensory neurons sit in the dorsal root ganglion. Motor axons leave the cord through the ventral root.
Category: Spinal Cord
Question 13
In the spinal cord, gray matter forms an outer layer that surrounds the white matter.
Correct Answer
False
False. In the spinal cord, gray matter forms a central butterfly-shaped core and white matter surrounds it. The arrangement is reversed in the cerebrum and cerebellum, where gray matter forms the outer cortex.
Category: Spinal Cord
Question 14
The dura mater is the outermost and toughest of the three meninges.
Correct Answer
True
True. The dura mater is a thick layer of dense connective tissue attached to the inner surface of the skull. Its folds hold the dural venous sinuses.
Category: Meninges and CSF
Question 15
Choroid plexuses that produce cerebrospinal fluid are found only in the lateral ventricles.
Correct Answer
False
False. Choroid plexuses, capillary networks covered by ependymal cells, are present in all four ventricles and filter blood to form cerebrospinal fluid.
Category: Meninges and CSF
Question 16
A lumbar puncture is performed below the inferior end of the spinal cord so that cerebrospinal fluid can be withdrawn without injuring the cord.
Correct Answer
True
True. The spinal cord ends in the upper lumbar region while the subarachnoid space continues lower, so a needle placed in the lower lumbar region reaches cerebrospinal fluid among the nerve roots rather than the cord.
Category: Meninges and CSF
Question 17
The circle of Willis is formed by branches of the external carotid arteries.
Correct Answer
False
False. The circle of Willis is formed by branches of the internal carotid arteries and the basilar artery. The external carotid arteries supply the face and scalp, not the brain.
Category: Blood Supply
Question 18
A transient ischemic attack is a temporary blockage of blood flow to part of the brain that does not cause lasting tissue death.
Correct Answer
True
True. In a transient ischemic attack, often called a mini-stroke, blood flow is restored before neurons die, so symptoms resolve. It is a warning sign of a possible future stroke.
Category: Blood Supply
Question 19
The perineurium is the connective tissue layer that surrounds each individual axon within a nerve.
Correct Answer
False
False. The endoneurium surrounds each individual axon. The perineurium wraps a fascicle, a bundle of axons, and the epineurium covers the whole nerve.
Category: Peripheral Nervous System
Question 20
Humans have 31 pairs of spinal nerves.
Correct Answer
True
True. There are 8 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral and 1 coccygeal pair, for a total of 31 pairs of spinal nerves.
Category: Peripheral Nervous System