Projects to the cerebellum via the restiform body. A compact bundle of nerve fibers connecting the medulla with the cerebellum. Described first in 1695 and named by Humphrey Ridley, an English anatomist. Tracts and fibers forming this bundle originate in the medulla and the spinal cord. Receives exteroceptive fibers from the ipsilateral side of the face via the spinal tract of the trigeminal nerve.
Lesions result in loss of pain sensation in the ipsilateral face.
Forward continuation of the same structure seen in more caudal sections. Note the characteristic convoluted appearance. The principal inferior olive is the largest component of the inferior olivary complex, which includes, in addition, the dorsal accessory inferior olive and the medial accessory inferior olive. Represents descending fibers from the cerebral cortex that pass through the internal capsule, cerebral peduncle, and pons before reaching the medullary pyramids. Fibers in the pyramid undergo partial crossing in the motor decussation to give rise to the lateral corticospinal tract.