The formation of the spinal nerve from the dorsal and ventral roots. (Grey matter labeled at center right.)
Latin
substantia grisea
Dorlands/Elsevier
s_27/12766773
Grey matter (or gray matter) is a major component of the central nervous system, consisting of nerve cell bodies, glial cells (astroglia and oligodendrocytes), capillaries, and short nerve cell extensions/processes (axons and dendrites).
It is composed of cell bodies as opposed to white matter (cell axons). It has a grey brown color which comes from the capillary blood vessels and the neuronal cell bodies.
The function of grey matter is to route sensory or motor stimulus to interneurons of the CNS in order to create a response to the stimulus through chemical synapse activity. Research has shown that the amount of grey matter in a brain is positively correlated with human intelligence[1], except in the case of those with autism spectrum disorders[2].
Grey matter structures (cortex, deep nuclei) process information originating in the sensory organs or in other grey matter regions. This information is conveyed via specialized nerve cell extensions (long axons), which form the bulk of the cerebral, cerebellar, and spinal white matter.
References
^ Relationships between IQ and Regional Cortical Gray Matter Thickness in Healthy Adults
^ Autistic Children May Have Abnormal Functioning of Mirror Neuron System
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