Question

Which of the following statements regarding spinal nerves is true?

a. the dorsal ramus carries only sensory information while the ventral ramus carries only motor information
b. the dorsal root carries information only toward the spinal cord while the ventral root carries information away from the spinal cord
c. the dorsal ramus only carries information toward the posterior compartment of the body while the ventral ramus only carries information toward the anterior compartment of the body
d. the dorsal root is equivalent to the dorsal ramus

Answer 1

The true statement about spinal nerves is that the dorsal root carries sensory information toward the spinal cord, while the ventral root carries motor information away from it. This reflects the respective roles of sensory and motor neurons in the peripheral nervous system.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement regarding spinal nerves that is true is: 'the dorsal root carries information only toward the spinal cord while the ventral root carries information away from the spinal cord'. The dorsal root of a spinal nerve contains the axons of sensory neurons, which transmit sensory information toward the spinal cord. Conversely, the ventral root contains the axons of motor neurons, which convey motor commands away from the spinal cord to various effector organs such as muscles.

Each spinal nerve is composed of both sensory and motor axons. The sensory neuron cell bodies are located in the dorsal root ganglia, whereas the motor neurons' cell bodies are found in the ventral gray matter of the spinal cord. These functional distinctions are critical for understanding the flow of neural information in the body's peripheral nervous system.