| somatic reproduction | Asexual reproduction by fission or budding of somatic cells. (05 Mar 2000) |
|---|---|
| somatic sensory cortex | Somatosensory cortex, the region of the cerebral cortex receiving the somatic sensory radiation from the ventrobasal nucleus of the thalamus; it represents the primary cortical processing mechanism for sensory information originating at the body surfaces (touch) and in deeper tissues such as muscle, tendons, and joint capsules (position sense); it corresponds approximately to Brodmann's areas 1, 2, 3 on the postcentral gyrus. Synonym: somesthetic area. (05 Mar 2000) |
| somatic swallow | A swallowing pattern with muscular contractions which appear to be under control of the person at a subconscious level; distinguished from visceral swallow. Visceral swallow, the immature swallowing pattern of an infant or a person with tongue thrust, resembling peristaltic wavelike muscular contractions observed in the gut; adult or mature swallowing is more volitional and therefore somatic. (05 Mar 2000) |
| special somatic afferent column | A column of gray matter in the hindbrain of the embryo, represented in the adult by the nuclei of the auditory and vestibular nerves. (05 Mar 2000) |
| asymmetric motor neuropathy | Neuropathy in which the loss of function is more marked in the extremities of one side of the body, old term for diabetic polyradiculopathy. (05 Mar 2000) |
| autonomic motor neuron | See: motor neuron. (05 Mar 2000) |
| autonomic motor neurons | (preganglionic neuron's), by contrast, innervate smooth muscle fibres or glands only by the intermediary of a second, peripheral, neuron (postganglionic or ganglionic m. Neuron) located in an autonomic ganglion. See: motor endplate, autonomic nervous system. Synonym: anterior horn cell, motoneuron. (05 Mar 2000) |
| Bender Visual Motor Gestalt test | <psychology> A psychological test used by neurologists and clinical psychologists to measure a person's ability to visually copy a set of geometric designs. It consists of nine geometric designs on cards. The subject is asked to redraw them from memory after each one is presented individually. It is useful for measuring visuospatial and visuomotor coordination to detect brain damage. Synonym: Bender Visual Motor Gestalt test. (14 Aug 2000) |
| gamma motor neurons | The reflex arc consisting of small anterior horn cells and neuroma, their small fibres projecting to the intrafusal bundle producing its contraction, which initiates the afferent impulses that pass through the posterior root to the anterior horn cells, inducing a stretch reflex. Synonym: gamma motor neurons, gamma motor system, Granit's loop. (05 Mar 2000) |
| gamma motor system | The reflex arc consisting of small anterior horn cells and neuroma, their small fibres projecting to the intrafusal bundle producing its contraction, which initiates the afferent impulses that pass through the posterior root to the anterior horn cells, inducing a stretch reflex. Synonym: gamma motor neurons, gamma motor system, Granit's loop. (05 Mar 2000) |
| ganglionic motor neuron | See: motor neuron. (05 Mar 2000) |
| major motor seizure | A grand mal seizure or other convulsive seizure. (05 Mar 2000) |
| visceral motor neuron | See: motor neuron. (05 Mar 2000) |
| minor motor seizure | Old term for nonconvulsive seizure seen in patients with secondary generalised epilepsies. (05 Mar 2000) |
| motor | <neurology, physiology> A muscle, nerve or centre that effects or produces movement. (18 Nov 1997) |