| Diencephalon | |
|---|---|
 The hypothalamus and the right and left halves of the thalamus are labeled. The cerebellum is not part of the diencephalon. | |
| Details | |
| Precursor | Prosencephalon, derived from theneural tube |
| Part of | Human brain |
| Parts | Thalamus, thehypothalamus, theepithalamus and thesubthalamus |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | diencephalon |
| MeSH | D004027 |
| NeuroLex ID | birnlex_1503 |
| TA98 | A14.1.03.007 A14.1.08.001 |
| TA2 | 5661 |
| TH | H3.11.03.5.00001 |
| FMA | 62001 |
| Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy | |
In thehuman brain, thediencephalon (orinterbrain[1]) is a division of theforebrain (embryonicprosencephalon). It is situated between thetelencephalon and themidbrain (embryonicmesencephalon). The diencephalon has also been known as thetweenbrain in older literature.[2] It consists of structures that are on either side of thethird ventricle, including thethalamus, thehypothalamus, theepithalamus and thesubthalamus.
The diencephalon is one of the mainvesicles of the brain formed duringembryogenesis. During the third week of development aneural tube is created from theectoderm, one of the three primarygerm layers. The tube forms three main vesicles during the third week of development: theprosencephalon, themesencephalon and therhombencephalon. The prosencephalon gradually divides into the telencephalon (thecerebrum) and the diencephalon.
The diencephalon consists of the following structures:[citation needed]
Theoptic nerve (CNII) attaches to the diencephalon. The optic nerve is a sensory (afferent) nerve responsible forvision andsight; it runs from the eye through theoptic canal in theskull and attaches to the diencephalon. Theretina itself is derived from theoptic cup, a part of the embryonic diencephalon.[citation needed]
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The diencephalon is the region of the embryonic vertebrateneural tube that gives rise to anteriorforebrain structures including thethalamus,hypothalamus,posterior portion of thepituitary gland, and thepineal gland. The diencephalon encloses a cavity called the third ventricle. The thalamus serves as a relay centre for sensory and motor impulses between the spinal cord and medulla oblongata, and the cerebrum. It recognizes sensory impulses of heat, cold, pain, pressure etc. The floor of the third ventricle is called the hypothalamus. It has control centres for control of eye movement and hearing responses.
This article incorporates text in thepublic domain frompage 807 of the 20th edition ofGray's Anatomy(1918)
