Edinger-Westphal nucleus
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
The Edinger-Westphal nucleus is the accessory parasympathetic nucleus of the oculomotor nerve, supplying the constricting muscles of the iris. Anatomically, the paired nuclei are posterior to the main motor nucleus and antero-lateral to the cerebral aqueduct in the rostral midbrain at the level of the superior colliculus. It is the most rostral of the parasympathetic nuclei in the brain stem.
Functionally, it supplies pre-ganglionic parasympathetics to the eye, constricting the pupil and accommodating the lens.
The nucleus is named for both Ludwig Edinger, who demonstrated it in the foetus in 1885, and for Karl Friedrich Otto Westphal, who demonstrated it in the adult in 1887.
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