Spinal Cord Section Inside the Vertebra Surrounded by Cerebrospinal Fluid

Description

Centered within the vertebral canal, the spinal cord appears in transverse section with butterfly-shaped gray matter (substantia grisea) surrounded by peripheral white matter (substantia alba). Posterior (dorsal) horns project toward the dorsal median sulcus, while the broader anterior (ventral) horns face the anterior median fissure. A small central canal sits at the commissural midline, and the cord is enveloped by pia mater, arachnoid mater, and dura mater, with cerebrospinal fluid filling the subarachnoid space between pia and arachnoid. Vertebral bone forms the outer boundary of the spinal column around these neural and meningeal layers. This cross-sectional organization matters when you localize spinal cord lesions by tract and horn involvement, and when you separate intramedullary from extramedullary patterns on MRI. Syringomyelia, for example, expands from the central canal region and classically compromises crossing spinothalamic fibers in the anterior white commissure, producing suspended, cape-like loss of pain and temperature. CSF is not just a background fluid here, it frames the cord for lumbar puncture practice and for understanding how meningitis or subarachnoid hemorrhage distributes within the spinal subarachnoid space. Use this artwork for neuroanatomy and gross anatomy teaching when introducing gray versus white matter, spinal meninges, and CSF circulation (liquor) from ventricular system to spinal canal. It also fits neurology and neurosurgery materials on myelopathy, radiculopathy correlations at the dorsal and ventral root entry zones, and imaging-oriented explanations of the central canal and perimedullary CSF spaces. Anatomical accuracy verified by SciePro's Medical Advisory Board.