Human Development – Lecture 21 – Neural development and the
human brain part 1
Early brain development;
Sometimes the brain can recover, the neurons cannot but parts can take over
specific functions.
It is a single system.
Different parts of the brain control different functions.
Brain cells;
• Nerve (neurons); neurons communicate with each other. In the body network
of communicating neurons are necessarily, in some brain parts this is not
necessarily.
• Glial; influenced neuronal communication
The brain’s composition;
• Hind brain (rhombencephalon)
o Cerebellum & pons (metencephalon)
o Medulla oblongata (myelencephalon)
• Midbrain (mesencephalon)
o Tectum & tegmentum
• Forebrain;
o Diencephalon (thalamus, subthalamus and
hypothalamus)
o Telencephalon = cerebrum/cortex (2 cerebral
hemispheres)
Growth of the brain occurs from inside → out and the bottom → up
Prenatal brain development;
CNS formed embryo ±2 weeks old;
• Dorsal surface thickens forming a neural tube
o Forward end neural tube enlarges and differentiate into hindbrain,
midbrain and forebrain
o Rest of neural tube become spinal cord
Week 3-4;
Notochord formation; first cells that move through the primitive streak form the
cardiogenetic mesoderm.
Neural tube formation;
• Neurulation;
o ectoderm thickens on dorsal surface
o neural tissue rolls and forms neural tube (brain and CNS)
• Cell migration neural tube
o Cells migrate from inner part (ventricular zone) (inside of the tube) to
outside of neural tube to form brain regions.
human brain part 1
Early brain development;
Sometimes the brain can recover, the neurons cannot but parts can take over
specific functions.
It is a single system.
Different parts of the brain control different functions.
Brain cells;
• Nerve (neurons); neurons communicate with each other. In the body network
of communicating neurons are necessarily, in some brain parts this is not
necessarily.
• Glial; influenced neuronal communication
The brain’s composition;
• Hind brain (rhombencephalon)
o Cerebellum & pons (metencephalon)
o Medulla oblongata (myelencephalon)
• Midbrain (mesencephalon)
o Tectum & tegmentum
• Forebrain;
o Diencephalon (thalamus, subthalamus and
hypothalamus)
o Telencephalon = cerebrum/cortex (2 cerebral
hemispheres)
Growth of the brain occurs from inside → out and the bottom → up
Prenatal brain development;
CNS formed embryo ±2 weeks old;
• Dorsal surface thickens forming a neural tube
o Forward end neural tube enlarges and differentiate into hindbrain,
midbrain and forebrain
o Rest of neural tube become spinal cord
Week 3-4;
Notochord formation; first cells that move through the primitive streak form the
cardiogenetic mesoderm.
Neural tube formation;
• Neurulation;
o ectoderm thickens on dorsal surface
o neural tissue rolls and forms neural tube (brain and CNS)
• Cell migration neural tube
o Cells migrate from inner part (ventricular zone) (inside of the tube) to
outside of neural tube to form brain regions.
