Explore the system
Explore the brain in place
Tap a structure within the cutaway, or use the region selector. Deep structures are projected into this schematic view.
Sources and model limits
Original schematic. Positions show relationships; structures and concentrations are not to scale.
- Julien's Primer of Drug Action · 15 · 2 · Explore the brain in place · PDF 22, 23, 24 · 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6
Course notes and existing practice
Learning objective
Orient major course brain regions within the CNS/PNS distinction and relate the emphasized regions to later transmitter pathways.
Nervous-system organization
The central nervous system (CNS) comprises brain and spinal cord. The peripheral nervous system (PNS) connects the central system with the rest of the body. The course notes that brain action and peripheral action can both matter when describing a psychoactive drug’s overall effects.
A region map
The deck organizes the brain into hindbrain, midbrain, and forebrain. Hindbrain examples include medulla, pons, and cerebellum; the course associates the cerebellum with coordination and balance. The midbrain includes substantia nigra and the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Forebrain divisions include diencephalon, with thalamus and hypothalamus, and telencephalon, including basal ganglia, limbic structures, and cortex.
Landmarks to retain
Thalamus is introduced through sensory relay and attention; hypothalamus through homeostasis and autonomic processes. The striatum is connected with substantia nigra and movement. Nucleus accumbens is connected with VTA and reward-related circuitry. Hippocampus and amygdala appear in the course’s discussion of memory and emotion. These landmarks support pathway comparisons rather than one-region explanations of complex behavior.
- Central nervous system
- Brain and spinal cord.
- Peripheral nervous system
- Neural connections outside the brain and spinal cord serving the rest of the body.
- Ventral tegmental area
- A midbrain region emphasized in the course’s dopamine pathway material.
- Substantia nigra
- A midbrain region connected to the striatum in the course’s movement pathway.
- Nucleus accumbens
- A forebrain region connected with VTA in the course’s reward-related pathway.
Professor deck 2, PDF pages 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9. Explanation and terminology are paraphrased course material. Examples and study prompts are original, unscored teaching aids. Source conformance is separate from scientific or clinical review.
Worked examples are original instructional illustrations; they are not professor quotations or exam requirements.