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Climbing fiber
Microcircuitry of the cerebellum. Excitatory synapses are denoted by (+) and inhibitory synapses by (-). Climbing fiber is shown originating from the inferior olive (green).
Location	Inferior Olive and Cerebellum
Function	Unique excitatory function (see text)
Morphology	Unique projection neuron (see text)
Presynaptic connections	Inferior olive
Postsynaptic connections	Purkinje cells
Gray's	subject #187 796

Climbing fibers are the name given to a series of neuronal projections from the inferior olivary nucleus located in the medulla.

These axons pass through the pons and enter the cerebellum where they form synapses with the deep cerebellar nuclei and Purkinje cells. Each climbing fiber will form synapses with 1-10 Purkinje cells.

Early in development, Purkinje cells are innervated by multiple climbing fibers, but as the cerebellum matures, these inputs gradually become eliminated resulting in a single climbing fiber input per Purkinje cell.

These fibers provide very powerful, excitatory input to the cerebellum which results in the generation of complex spikes in Purkinje cells.

Climbing fiber activation is thought to serve as a motor error signal sent to the cerebellum, and is an important signal for motor timing.

These Climbing fibres carry information to various sources such as the spinal cord, vestibular system, red nucleus, superior colliculus, reticular formation and sensory and motor cortices.

[edit] External links

• Neuroanatomy at UW cere/text/P4/climb.htm

v·d·e Brain: rhombencephalon (hindbrain)
Myelencephalon/medulla	anterior/ventral: Arcuate nucleus of medulla • Pyramid (Decussation) • Olivary body • Inferior olivary nucleus • Anterior median fissure • Ventral respiratory group posterior/dorsal: VII,IX,X: Solitary/tract • XII, X: Dorsal • IX,X,XI: Ambiguus • IX: Inferior salivatory nucleus • Gracile nucleus/Cuneate nucleus/Accessory cuneate nucleus • Area postrema • Posterior median sulcus • Dorsal respiratory group raphe/reticular: Sensory decussation • Reticular formation (Gigantocellular nucleus, Parvocellular reticular nucleus, Ventral reticular nucleus, Lateral reticular nucleus, Paramedian reticular nucleus) • Raphe nuclei (Obscurus, Magnus, Pallidus) tracts: Corticospinal tract (Lateral, Anterior) • Inferior cerebellar peduncle • Olivocerebellar tract • Spinocerebellar (Dorsal, Ventral) • Spinothalamic tract • PCML (Posterior external arcuate fibers, Internal arcuate fibers, Medial lemniscus) • Extrapyramidal (Rubrospinal tract, Vestibulospinal tract, Tectospinal tract)
Metencephalon/pons	anterior/ventral: Superior olivary nucleus • Basis pontis (Pontine nuclei, Middle cerebellar peduncles) posterior/dorsal: Pontine tegmentum (Trapezoid body, Superior medullary velum, Locus ceruleus, MLF, Vestibulocerebellar tract, V Principal Spinal & Motor, VI, VII, VII: Superior salivary nucleus) • VIII-c (Dorsal, Anterior)/VIII-v (Lateral, Superior, Medial, Inferior) raphe/reticular: Reticular formation (Caudal pontine reticular nucleus, Oral pontine reticular nucleus, Tegmental pontine reticular nucleus, Paramedian pontine reticular formation) • Median raphe nucleus Apneustic center • Pneumotaxic center
Metencephalon/cerebellum	Vermis • Flocculus • Arbor vitae • Cerebellar tonsil • Inferior medullary velum Molecular layer (Stellate cell, Basket cell, Parallel fiber) • Purkinje cell layer (Purkinje cell) • Granule cell layer (Golgi cell) • Mossy fibers • Climbing fiber Deep cerebellar nuclei (Dentate, Emboliform, Globose, Fastigial)
Fourth ventricle	apertures (Median, Lateral) • Rhomboid fossa (Vagal trigone, Hypoglossal trigone, Obex, Sulcus limitans, Facial colliculus, Medial eminence) • Lateral recess

This page uses content from the English-language version of Wikipedia. The original article was at Climbing fiber. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Psychology Wiki, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.