The spinal cord is the body’s information superhighway, along which billions of nerve cells carry messages that enable the body to move and function.
It has two main sections: a butterfly-shaped inner mass of grey matter surrounded by outer white matter. White matter is made up of nerve fibre that relay signals to and from the brain. Grey matter contains neurons that receive signals from receptors around the body, and send on instructions to the muscles.
When the body moves, messages travel from the brain down the spinal cord. Messages also are carried up the spinal cord to the brain so a person can feel sensations.
There are nerves that branch off the spinal cord. They are called spinal nerves. The nerves are divided into five main sections (from top to bottom): cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral, and coccygeal. The spinal cord and nerves are very fragile.
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