| corticobulbar fibre | <physiology> Nerve fibre's projecting from the motor and somatic sensory cortex to the rhombencephalon. Included in this corticofugal fibre system are corticoreticular fibre's terminating in the reticular formation of the rhombencephalon, and corticonuclear fibre's to the motor nuclei innervating the musculature of the face, tongue, and jaws, and to some fibre's of the rhombencephalic sensory relay nuclei. They terminate directly on some motor cranial nerve nuclei, in the reticular formation, and on sensory relay nuclei, such as the cuneate nucleus and gracile nucleus and the spinal trigeminal nucleus. See: corticobulbar tract. (05 Mar 2000) |
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| myelinated nerve fibre | An axon enveloped by a myelin sheath formed by oligodendroglia cells (in brain and spinal cord) or Schwann cells (in peripheral nerves). Synonym: medullated nerve fibre. (05 Mar 2000) |
| corticonuclear fibre | <physiology> Descriptive term connotating fibres from a cortical structure (cerebral or cerebellar) passing to subcortical cell groups; fibres comprising the tractus corticobulbaris; cerebellar corticonuclear fibres (Purkinje cell axons to the cerebellar nuclei). Synonym: fibrae corticonucleares. (05 Mar 2000) |
| corticopontine fibre | <physiology> The fibres that compose the corticopontine tract. Synonym: fibrae corticopontinae. (05 Mar 2000) |
| corticoreticular fibre | <physiology> Corticofugal fibres distributed to the reticular formation of the mesencephalon and rhombencephalon. See: corticobulbar fibres. Synonym: fibrae corticoreticulares. (05 Mar 2000) |
| corticorubral fibre | <physiology> Nerve fibres projecting from the cerebral cortex (primarily precentral and premotor regions) to the red nucleus of the midbrain. (05 Mar 2000) |
| cotton-fibre embolism | Embolism by cotton fibres from sterile gauze used in intravenous medication or transfusion; may form as foreign body granulomas in small pulmonary arteries. (05 Mar 2000) |
| crude fibre | The indigestible parts of plant-based food. (09 Oct 1997) |
| Henle's fibre layer | The layer of inner cone fibres in the central area of the retina. (05 Mar 2000) |
| high-fibre diet | A diet high in the nondigestible part of plants, which is fibre. Fibre is found in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes. Insoluble fibre increases stool bulk, decreases transit time of food in the bowel, and decreases constipation and the risk of colon cancer. Soluble fibre delays absorption of glucose, which helps to control blood sugar in diabetes mellitus, and delays absorption of lipids, which helps to control hyperlipidemia. Recommended in treatment of diverticular disease of the colon. (05 Mar 2000) |
| hollow fibre reactor | A fermentation system in which the cells are separated from the medium using semipermeable membranes arranged in the form of hollow fibres. (14 Nov 1997) |
| Purkinje fibre | <cardiology, pathology> A group of specialised cardiac muscle cells that conduct electrical impulses through the heart and are involved in regulating the heart beat. The fibres form the terminal portion of the heart conduction system and have central granulated protoplasm containing one or two nuclei and a transversely striated peripheral portion. They are the terminal ramifications of the conducting system of the heart found beneath the endocardium of the ventricles. See: conducting system of heart. (10 Jul 2002) |
| spindle fibre | <cell biology> Microtubules of the spindle that interdigitate at the equatorial plane with microtubules of the opposite polarity derived from the opposite pole microtubule organising centre. Usually distinguished from kinetochore fibres that are microtubules that link the poles with the kinetochore, although these could be included in a broader use of the term. (18 Nov 1997) |
| nerve fibre | The axon of a nerve cell, ensheathed by oligodendroglia cells in brain and spinal cord, and by Schwann cells in peripheral nerves. (05 Mar 2000) |
| stress fibre | <physiology> Long bundles of microfilaments made up of actin subunits. They are involved in the attachment of cultured cells to a substratum, the determination of cell shape and may be involved in cellular mobility. They are found in most cells and have been shown to be contractile, have a periodicity reminiscent of the sarcomere and are anchored at one end to a focal adhesion, although sometimes between two focal adhesions. (17 Jul 2002) |