Visible Human Transverse Section Through the Head

You selected: optic chiasm

A small area of the optic chiam appears in this section. The chiasm represents the "crossing-over" of nerve fibers from the right and left optic nerves of the eye. If you were to divide each eye in half along the sagittal plane, fibers from the outside of the right eye continue to the right side of the brain, ultimately to the R. occipital lobe. Fibers from the left/inside region of the right eye cross at the chiasm and continue to the left side of the brain. Likewise, the inside region of the left eye crosses to the right side of the brain, while fibers from the outside area of the eye continue to the left hemisphere.

Key points in this image
eye | lens | medial rectus | lateral rectus | ethmoid sinus | sphenoid sinus | nasal septum | temporalis muscle | brain |
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Information
Module Name: a_vm1110
Module Title: Visible Human Transverse Section Through the Head
Image Info: Gross specimen, transverse section
Created by: Lynn Bry
Contact Email:bryl@medicine.wustl.edu
Last modified: Feb 4th, 1997
Created with Annotation 1.0