|This article relies largely or entirely upon a single source. (March 2012)|
Drawing of a cast of the ventricular cavities, viewed from the side.
|Latin||aqueductus mesencephali (cerebri).
|NeuroLex ID||Cerebral aqueduct|
|Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy|
The cerebral aqueduct, also known as the aqueductus mesencephali, mesencephalic duct, or the aqueduct of Sylvius is within the mesencephalon (or midbrain), contains cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and connects the third ventricle in the diencephalon to the fourth ventricle within the region of the mesencephalon and metencephalon, located dorsal to the pons and ventral to the cerebellum.
The cerebral aqueduct, as other parts of the ventricular system of the brain, develops from the central canal of the neural tube, and it originates from the portion of the neural tube that is present in the developing mesencephalon, hence the name "mesencephalic duct."
|This section requires expansion. (January 2014)|
The aqueduct functions to connect the third and fourth ventricles and to ensure the flow of cerebrospinal fluid through these areas.
Aqueductal stenosis, a narrowing of the cerebral aqueduct, obstructs the flow of CSF and has been associated with non-communicating hydrocephalus. Such narrowing can be congenital, arise via tumor compression, or through cyclical gliosis secondary to an initial partial obstruction.
- Le, Tao; Bhushan, Vikas; Vasan, Neil (2010). First Aid for the USMLE Step 1: 2010 20th Anniversary Edition. USA: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. p. 126. ISBN 978-0-07-163340-6.
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- Atlas image: n2a3p2 at the University of Michigan Health System
Transverse section through mid-brain; number 2 indicates the cerebral aqueduct.