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spinal nerve
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structures of a spinal nerve
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structures of a spinal nerve
structures of a spinal nerve Structures of a typical spinal nerve.

spinal nerve

anatomy
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François Magendie

spinal nerve, in vertebrates, any one of many paired peripheral nerves that arise from the spinal cord. In humans there are 31 pairs: 8 cervical, 12 thoracic, 5 lumbar, 5 sacral, and 1 coccygeal. Each pair connects the spinal cord with a specific region of the body. Near the spinal cord each spinal nerve branches into two roots. One, composed of sensory fibres, enters the spinal cord via the dorsal root; its cell bodies lie in a spinal ganglion that is outside the spinal cord. The other, composed of motor fibres, leaves the spinal cord via the ventral root; its cell bodies lie in specific areas of the spinal cord itself.

The Editors of Encyclopaedia BritannicaThis article was most recently revised and updated by Adam Augustyn.