Answer
The lateral corticospinal tract transmits impulses that cause contractions of skeletal muscles in the distal parts of the limbs.
Work Step by Step
Axons of the cerebral upper motor neurons (UMNs) descend and form the cortico-spinal pathways. . These pathways travel from cerebrum through midbrain to the medulla. Most of the axons in this pathway Cross over to the opposite side (decussate) and descend to spinal cord to synapse with local circuit neurons or lower motor neurons(LMN). So the the right side of the cerebral cortex controls most of the muscles on the left side of the body, and the left cerebral cortex controls most of the muscles on the right side of the body .
There are two cerebrospinal tracts; the lateral CST, and the anterior CST. The lateral corticospinal tract consists of those axons that decussate in the medulla. This tract terminates in neurons that innervate skeletal muscles of the distal parts of limbs. The anterior corticospinal tract comprises axons of UMNs that do not decussate in the medulla . The anterior CST coveys impulses that control the muscles that move the trunk, and the proximal parts of the limbs..
