The Cross-Section of the Spinal Cord Revealing the Arteries

Description

Centered in the field, the spinal cord parenchyma is sectioned transversely to expose the central canal within the gray commissure and the butterfly-shaped gray matter, with anterior (ventral) and posterior (dorsal) horns surrounded by the white matter columns (funiculi). Along the pial surface, circumferential arterial channels encircle the cord, sending small penetrating arterioles radially inward toward the gray matter and adjacent white matter. At the periphery, the meningeal coverings frame the cord, and small nerve rootlets can be inferred exiting anterolaterally and posterolaterally toward the spinal nerves. Orientation is anatomical: dorsal structures lie posteriorly, ventral structures anteriorly, and the lateral funiculi sit between. Segmental vascular anatomy matters because cord perfusion fails in recognizable patterns. The anterior spinal artery territory, which supplies much of the anterior two-thirds of the cord including the anterior horns and corticospinal tracts, underlies the classic anterior spinal artery syndrome after hypotension, aortic surgery, or dissection, with motor paralysis and pain and temperature loss but relative preservation of dorsal column modalities. Those circumferential pial arteries, the vasocorona, and their penetrating branches also explain why small-vessel compromise can produce central cord ischemia around the gray matter. A tight cross-section makes these territories teachable. Use this illustration in neuroanatomy and neurovascular lectures to anchor white matter tract location to arterial supply, and in surgical or interventional publications discussing radiculomedullary contributors (including the artery of Adamkiewicz) and spinal cord infarction patterns. It also fits radiology teaching files paired with axial MR images and diffusion restriction in acute spinal ischemia. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.