Descending Connections From the Hypothalamus

Autonomic dysfunction (sweating responses) in multiple sclerosis.

“…They found that pathways subserving heat-loss function appear to be concentrated in the intermediate and lateral part of the dorsal tegmentum of the mid-brain and pons. Magoun, Ranson, and Hetherington (1938) also working on cats discovered 3 that the descending vegetative pathways from the hypothalamus occupy a wide area in both the central and tegmental region of the mid-brain and pass through the medial and lateral portions of the pontile tegmentum. List and Peet (1939) investigated thermal sweating disturbances in patients with lesions of the pons, medulla oblongata, and cervical cord and describe an anatomical outline for these pathways in man.…”

Role of amygdala in mediating sexual and emotional behavior via coupled nitric oxide release1

“…Cardiovascular changes were observed in experiments where the motor cortex surface was stimulated, eliciting tachycardia accompanied by and independent of changes in arterial blood pressure [51] . The "sigmoid" cortex [52] and frontal lobe [53][54][55] , and, in particular, the medial agranular region [56] , subcallosal gyrus [57] , septal area [58] , temporal lobe [59] , and cingulate gyrus [60][61][62] appear to be involved. The insular cortex in cardiac regulation is important because of its high connectivity with the limbic system, suggesting that the insula is involved in cardiac rate and rhythm regulation under emotional stress [53,54] .…”

Anatomy of the Hypothalamus and Its Connections

“…This tract was first described by Schutz in 1891 and is reviewed by Mitchell (1953); later works restricted it to a tract originating from hypothalamic periventricular fibers streaming ventral to the midbrain aqueduct, joining the medial longitudinal fasciculus at the floor of the fourth ventricle to descend into the spinal cord within the anterior column's fasciculus proprius and hence to impinge upon the lateral gray column of the thorac-lumbar segments. However, Ranson and Magoun (Magoun, 1939;Magoun et al, 1938) believed this tract to have a far broader spinal cord distribution and termination.…”

“…Ranson and Magoun (Magoun, 1939;Magoun et al, 1938) classified such connections as arising from all the hypothalamic nuclei, joining the medial forebrain bundle laterally and then terminating diffusely in the midbrain reticulo-formation with secondary projections to all the descending extrapyramidal tracts. Mitchell (1953) felt that such connections could be classified as hypothalamic-reticulo spinal but since they do not arise from the periventricular fibers and do not descend solely in the reticulo-spinal tract, it would seem a somewhat restrictive term.…”