Answer
The cerebellar peduncles attach the cerebellum to the brain stem. There are three pairs of these structures -- the the superior (SCP), the middle (MCP), and the inferior cerebellar peduncles (ICP). Generally, the function of the cerebellar peduncles is the conduction of neural impulses between the cerebellum and other areas of the brain.
Work Step by Step
The superior cerebellar peduncles (SCP begin in the cerebellum and end in the red nucleus of the mid brain and the thalamic nuclei.
The MCPs are the largest of the cerebellar peduncles. . They go from the pontine nucleus to the cerebral cortex. Their function is to carry impulse from the pontine nucleus to the cerebellum.
The ICPs compriss several types of axons:
a. Axons of spinocerebaellar tracts that carry impulses from proprioceptors in limbs and trunk to
the cerbellum
b. Axons that carry sensory information into cerebellum from proprioceptors in head and neck.
c. Medullary axons from superior olivary nucleus to the cerebellum.
d. Axons that transmit impulses from vestibular nuclei to nuclei of pons and medulla.
e. Axons that convey impulses from the cerebellum to the reticular formation.
