Grey matter is nervous tissue made mainly of neuron cell bodies, dendrites, synapses and glial cells, with relatively few myelinated axons, which gives it a darker colour. In the cerebrum it forms the outer cortex and deep nuclei such as the basal ganglia, thalamus and amygdala. It is where most synaptic processing takes place.
| Location | Cerebral cortex on the brain surface and deep nuclei within the hemispheres |
|---|---|
| Parts | |
| Connections |
|
| Blood Supply | Cortical branches of the cerebral arteries; Lenticulostriate arteries (deep grey nuclei) |
Processes information: receives synaptic input, integrates it and produces output signals that travel along axons in the white matter.
Grey matter has a high metabolic rate and is more sensitive to hypoxia than white matter, so cortical and deep grey structures are damaged early in cardiac arrest. MRI measures of grey matter volume track ageing and neurodegenerative disease. Grey matter heterotopia (nests of neurons left in the wrong place during development) can cause epilepsy.
Damage after cardiac arrest or severe hypoxia that preferentially affects the cortex, hippocampus and basal ganglia.
Neurons that failed to migrate to the cortex during development, forming nodules that often cause seizures.
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