Meaning & use
substantia nigra
Last updated
Meaning
nounsingularmedicalbiology
A dark band of nerve cells in the midbrain whose neurons release dopamine and play a major part in controlling voluntary movement.
Grammar: Used with 'the': the substantia nigra; no plural in normal use.
Patterns
- the substantia nigra of something
Cells in the substantia nigra send dopamine to areas that coordinate movement.
Parkinson's disease is linked to the loss of neurons in the substantia nigra.
Scans showed reduced activity in the patient's substantia nigra.
Common combinations
- neurons in the substantia nigra
- Neurons in the substantia nigra gradually die in Parkinson's disease.
- degeneration of the substantia nigra
- Degeneration of the substantia nigra reduces dopamine supply.
- dopamine from the substantia nigra
- Dopamine from the substantia nigra helps regulate movement.
- damage to the substantia nigra
- Damage to the substantia nigra can cause tremor and stiffness.
Word family
- nigral adjective
- relating to the substantia nigra
- nigrostriatal adjective
- describing the pathway from the substantia nigra to the striatum
- dopaminergic adjective
- releasing or acting with dopamine
- midbrain noun
- the brain region where the substantia nigra sits
Commonly confused: substantia nigra or substantia gelatinosa?
substantia nigra vs substantia gelatinosa
This is a different structure, in the spinal cord, involved in pain signals, not in the midbrain.
Practice
Loss of dopamine-producing cells in the substantia nigra is most closely linked with which condition?
Choose one answer.
Parkinson's disease involves degeneration of the substantia nigra's dopamine neurons. The other conditions are not primarily tied to this structure.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “substantia nigra”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.