Magnocellular nuclei of basal forebrain

Nuclei magnocellulares telencephali basalis

  • Latin synonym: Complexus nuclearis basalis
  • Synonym: Basal nuclear complex; Basal forebrain cholinergic cell groups

Definition

Muhammad A. Javaid

The magnocellular nuclei of basal forebrain are a group of interconnected neuronal populations located in the basal and medial aspects of the cerebral forebrain. They contain large neurons, many of which are cholinergic, and include the:

Their cholinergic neurons project widely to the cerebral cortex, hippocampus, and other limbic structures, where acetylcholine contributes to attention, arousal, learning, and memory. Degeneration of these cholinergic neurons within the magnocellular nuclei of basal forebrain, particularly within the nucleus basalis, is an important feature of Alzheimer disease.

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References

  • Chapter 2, “Nucleus basalis of Meynert (NBM) and diagonal band of Broca (DBB)”, from Handbook of Clinical Neurology, Volume 79 (2003), pp. 39–59.

  • Ulfig, N. (1989) ‘Configuration of the magnocellular nuclei in the basal forebrain of the human adult’, Acta Anatomica, 134(2), pp. 100–105.