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The third ventricle (ventriculus tertius) is one of four connected fluid-filled cavities comprising the ventricular system
Ventricular system

The ventricular system is a set of structures in the brain continuous with the central canal of the spinal cord....
 within the human brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
. It is a median cleft between the two thalami
Thalamus

The thalamus is a pair and symmetric part of the brain. It constitutes the main part of the diencephalon....
, and is filled with cerebrospinal fluid
Cerebrospinal fluid

Cerebrospinal fluid , Liquor cerebrospinalis, is a clear bodily fluid that occupies the subarachnoid space and the ventricular system around and inside the brain....
 (CSF).

It is in the midline, between the left and right lateral ventricles.

ommunicates with the lateral ventricles anteriorly by the interventricular foramina
Interventricular foramina

In the brain, the interventricular foramina are channels that connect the paired lateral ventricles with the third ventricle at the midline of the brain....
 (of Monro).

It communicates with the fourth ventricle
Fourth ventricle

The fourth ventricle is one of the four connected fluid-filled cavities within the human brain. These cavities, known collectively as the ventricular system, consist of the left and right lateral ventricles, the third ventricle, and the fourth ventricle....
 posteriorly by the cerebral aqueduct
Cerebral aqueduct

The mesencephalic duct, also known as the aqueductus mesencephali, aqueduct of Franciscus Sylvius or the cerebral aqueduct, contains cerebrospinal fluid , is within the mesencephalon and connects the third ventricle in the diencephalon to the fourth ventricle, which is between the pons and cerebellum....
 (of Sylvius).

lopmentally the third ventricle represents the cavity of the diencephalon
Diencephalon

The diencephalon is the region of the brain that includes the thalamus, hypothalamus, epithalamus, prethalamus or subthalamus and pretectum. The diencephalon is located at the midline of the brain, above the mesencephalon of the brain stem....
.

s bounded by the thalamus
Thalamus

The thalamus is a pair and symmetric part of the brain. It constitutes the main part of the diencephalon....
 and hypothalamus
Hypothalamus

The hypothalamus is a portion of the brain that contains a number of small nuclei with a variety of functions. One of the most important functions of the hypothalamus is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland ....
 on both the left and right sides.






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The third ventricle (ventriculus tertius) is one of four connected fluid-filled cavities comprising the ventricular system
Ventricular system

The ventricular system is a set of structures in the brain continuous with the central canal of the spinal cord....
 within the human brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
. It is a median cleft between the two thalami
Thalamus

The thalamus is a pair and symmetric part of the brain. It constitutes the main part of the diencephalon....
, and is filled with cerebrospinal fluid
Cerebrospinal fluid

Cerebrospinal fluid , Liquor cerebrospinalis, is a clear bodily fluid that occupies the subarachnoid space and the ventricular system around and inside the brain....
 (CSF).

It is in the midline, between the left and right lateral ventricles.

Communication

It communicates with the lateral ventricles anteriorly by the interventricular foramina
Interventricular foramina

In the brain, the interventricular foramina are channels that connect the paired lateral ventricles with the third ventricle at the midline of the brain....
 (of Monro).

It communicates with the fourth ventricle
Fourth ventricle

The fourth ventricle is one of the four connected fluid-filled cavities within the human brain. These cavities, known collectively as the ventricular system, consist of the left and right lateral ventricles, the third ventricle, and the fourth ventricle....
 posteriorly by the cerebral aqueduct
Cerebral aqueduct

The mesencephalic duct, also known as the aqueductus mesencephali, aqueduct of Franciscus Sylvius or the cerebral aqueduct, contains cerebrospinal fluid , is within the mesencephalon and connects the third ventricle in the diencephalon to the fourth ventricle, which is between the pons and cerebellum....
 (of Sylvius).

Development

Developmentally the third ventricle represents the cavity of the diencephalon
Diencephalon

The diencephalon is the region of the brain that includes the thalamus, hypothalamus, epithalamus, prethalamus or subthalamus and pretectum. The diencephalon is located at the midline of the brain, above the mesencephalon of the brain stem....
.

Boundaries

It is bounded by the thalamus
Thalamus

The thalamus is a pair and symmetric part of the brain. It constitutes the main part of the diencephalon....
 and hypothalamus
Hypothalamus

The hypothalamus is a portion of the brain that contains a number of small nuclei with a variety of functions. One of the most important functions of the hypothalamus is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland ....
 on both the left and right sides. The lamina terminalis
Lamina terminalis

The median portion of the wall of the fore-brain vesicle consists of a thin lamina, the lamina terminalis, which stretches from the interventricular foramen to the recess at the base of the optic stalk....
 forms the anterior wall of the third ventricle.

Protrusions

There are two protrusions on the front of the third ventricle:
  • the supra-optic recess (above the optic chiasma)
  • the infundibular recess
    Infundibular recess

    The floor of the third ventricle is prolonged downward as a funnel-shaped recess, the infundibular recess, into the infundibulum, and to the apex of the latter the hypophysis is attached....
     (above the pituitary stalk).


In casts of the ventricular system, a small 'hole' may be seen in the body of the third ventricle. This is formed where the two thalami are joined together at the interthalamic adhesion
Interthalamic adhesion

The medial surface of the thalamus constitutes the upper part of the lateral wall of the third ventricle, and is connected to the corresponding surface of the opposite thalamus by a flattened gray band, the Interthalamic adhesion ....
 (not seen in all people).

See also

  • Suprapineal recess
    Suprapineal recess

    The suprapineal recess is an anatomical structure in the ventricular system of the brain.It is located in the posterior part of the third ventricle, overlying the cerebral aqueduct....


Additional images


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