midbrain

American  

[mid-breyn] / ˈmɪdˌbreɪn /

noun

Anatomy.

1. the middle of the three primary divisions of the brain in the embryo of a vertebrate or the part of the adult brain derived from this tissue; mesencephalon.

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midbrain British  

/ ˈmɪdˌbreɪn /

noun

1. the nontechnical name for mesencephalon

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midbrain Scientific  

/ mĭd′brān′ /

1. The middle part of the vertebrate brain. In most animals except mammals, the midbrain processes sensory information. In mammals, it serves primarily to connect the forebrain with the hindbrain.

2. Compare forebrain hindbrain

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Etymology

Origin of midbrain

First recorded in 1870–75; mid- + brain

Example Sentences

The disorder harms midbrain dopaminergic neurons, which release dopamine to regulate movement and learning.

From Science Daily

Associative learning, which takes place in the midbrain, can be impaired in some cases of obesity as a result of poor signaling to the brain from the GLP-1 peptides in the intestine.

From Salon

Researchers then had the same bats repeat the task but with a critical auditory pathway in the midbrain temporarily blocked.

From Science Daily

Northwestern's Zhou found correlations to BMI in the circuit between the olfactory tubercle and the midbrain region, the periaqueductal gray.

From Science Daily

"We developed an efficient method for stimulating stem cell differentiation to produce neural cells in the midbrain," said Andy Yang, first author on the study and a PhD student at the Donnelly Centre.

From Science Daily