| Optic chiasm | |
|---|---|
 Brain viewed from below; the front of the brain is above. Visual pathway with optic chiasm (X shape) is shown in red (image from Andreas Vesalius' Fabrica, 1543). | |
 Optic nerves, chiasm, and optic tracts | |
| Details | |
| System | Visual system |
| Function | Transmit visual information from the optic nerves to the occipital lobes of the brain |
| Identifiers | |
| Latin | chiasma opticum |
| MeSH | D009897 |
| NeuroNames | 459 |
| NeuroLex ID | birnlex_1416 |
| TA98 | A14.1.08.403 |
| TA2 | 5668 |
| FMA | 62045 |
| Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy | |
In neuroanatomy, the optic chiasm, or optic chiasma ( /ɒptɪk kaɪæzəm/; from Greek χίασμα 'crossing', from Ancient Greek χιάζω 'to mark with an X'), is the part of the brain where the optic nerves cross. It is located at the bottom of the brain immediately inferior to the hypothalamus.[1] The optic chiasm is found in all vertebrates, although in cyclostomes (lampreys and hagfishes), it is located within the brain.[2][3]
This article is about the optic chiasm of vertebrates, which is the best known nerve chiasm, but not every chiasm denotes a crossing of the body midline (e.g., in some invertebrates, see Chiasm (anatomy)). A midline crossing of nerves inside the brain is called a decussation (see Definition of types of crossings).
- ^ Colman, Andrew M. (2006). Oxford Dictionary of Psychology (2nd ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 530. ISBN 978-0-19-861035-9.
- ^ Bainbridge, David (30 June 2009). Beyond the Zonules of Zinn: A Fantastic Journey Through Your Brain. Harvard University Press. p. 162. ISBN 978-0-674-02042-9. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
- ^ de Lussanet, Marc H.E.; Osse, Jan W.M. (2012). "An ancestral axial twist explains the contralateral forebrain and the optic chiasm in vertebrates". Animal Biology. 62 (2): 193–216. arXiv:1003.1872. doi:10.1163/157075611X617102. ISSN 1570-7555. S2CID 7399128.