Dissectible Me 5 minute anatomy

Swallowing is a sequence of events that must occur in a well ordered manner to ensure food and drink goes to the oesophagus and not into the airway. What is this sequence and what cranial nerves do we need to worry about?

The popliteal fossa is posterior to the knee joint and in here we can find some major blood vessels and nerves. We will describe the boundaries of this fossa, the major structures that run through here, why this is useful clinical information and a couple of notes about remembering their names correctly.

Astrocytes are cells in the central nervous system crucial for supporting neurones and their function. A glioblastoma is a dangerous, rapidly growing type of brain tumour. Guess how they are linked.

Neurones are the major cells of the nervous system, but how do they work, how are they arranged, and what are the other cells of the nervous system?

The anatomy of the airway is incredibly important and fairly simple. The structures of the trachea and bronchi are adapted tubes that don't collapse with changes in pressure, and the mucociliary escalator has an important protective role.

The mediastinum is a region within the thorax between the lungs. In here we find the heart, great vessels, trachea, oesophagus and other anatomical structures. We can further describe where these structures are by dividing the mediastinum up into superior and inferior parts, and the inferior mediastinum up into anterior, middle and posterior medastinal compartments.

The anatomy of the superior vena cava and inferior vena cava in 5 minutes, with a little extra about anastomoses. These are the largest and some of the most important veins in the body.

How do skeletal muscle cells (myocytes) change their length? How does this relate to the different types of contractions that we see in gross anatomy and rigor mortis?

The parathyroid glands are vital as they help regulate blood calcium levels. Where are they?

Is the amygdala the fear centre of the brain? What's the anatomy here?