The body of the

sphenoid bone The sphenoid bone is an unpaired bone of the neurocranium. It is situated in the middle of the skull towards the front, in front of the basilar part of occipital bone, basilar part of the occipital bone. The sphenoid bone is one of the seven bones ...

, more or less cubical in shape, is hollowed out in its interior to form two large cavities, the

sphenoidal sinus The sphenoid sinus is a paired paranasal sinus occurring within the within the body of the sphenoid bone. It represents one pair of the four paired paranasal sinuses.Illustrated Anatomy of the Head and Neck, Fehrenbach and Herring, Elsevier, 2012, ...

es, which are separated from each other by a

septum In biology, a septum (Latin for ''something that encloses''; plural septa) is a wall, dividing a cavity or structure into smaller ones. A cavity or structure divided in this way may be referred to as septate. Examples Human anatomy * Interatri ...

Superior surface

The superior surface of the body

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presents in front a prominent spine, the

ethmoidal spine The superior surface of the body of the sphenoid bone (Fig. 145) presents in front a prominent spine, the ethmoidal spine, for articulation with the cribriform plate of the ethmoid; behind this is a smooth surface slightly raised in the middle lin ...

, for articulation with the

cribriform plate In mammalian anatomy, the cribriform plate (Latin for lit. ''sieve-shaped''), horizontal lamina or lamina cribrosa is part of the ethmoid bone. It is received into the ethmoidal notch of the frontal bone and roofs in the nasal cavities. It supp ...

of the

ethmoid bone The ethmoid bone (; from grc, ἡθμός, hēthmós, sieve) is an unpaired bone in the skull that separates the nasal cavity from the brain. It is located at the roof of the nose, between the two orbits. The cubical bone is lightweight due to a ...

; behind this is a smooth surface slightly raised in the middle line, and grooved on either side for the olfactory lobes of the

brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a v ...

. This surface is bounded behind by a ridge, which forms the anterior border of a narrow, transverse groove, the prechiasmatic groove, above and behind which lies the

optic chiasma In neuroanatomy, the optic chiasm, or optic chiasma (; , ), is the part of the brain where the optic nerves cross. It is located at the bottom of the brain immediately inferior to the hypothalamus. The optic chiasm is found in all vertebrate ...

; the groove ends on either side in the

optic foramen The ''optic foramen'' is the opening to the optic canal. The canal is located in the sphenoid bone; it is bounded medially by the body of the sphenoid and laterally by the lesser wing of the sphenoid. The superior surface of the sphenoid bone is b ...

, which transmits the

optic nerve In neuroanatomy, the optic nerve, also known as the second cranial nerve, cranial nerve II, or simply CN II, is a paired cranial nerve that transmits visual system, visual information from the retina to the brain. In humans, the optic nerve i ...

and

ophthalmic artery The ophthalmic artery (OA) is an artery of the head. It is the first branch of the internal carotid artery distal to the cavernous sinus. Branches of the ophthalmic artery supply all the structures in the orbit around the eye, as well as some st ...

into the

orbital cavity In anatomy, the orbit is the cavity or socket of the skull in which the eye and its appendages are situated. "Orbit" can refer to the bony socket, or it can also be used to imply the contents. In the adult human, the volume of the orbit is , o ...

. Behind the chiasmatic groove is an elevation, the

tuberculum sellae The tuberculum sellae (or the tubercle of the sella turcica) is a part of the sphenoid bone The sphenoid bone is an unpaired bone of the neurocranium. It is situated in the middle of the skull towards the front, in front of the basilar part of ...

; and behind this is a deep depression, the saddle-shaped

sella turcica The sella turcica (Latin for 'Turkish saddle') is a saddle-shaped depression in the body of the sphenoid bone of the human skull and of the skulls of other hominids including chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans. It serves as a cephalome ...

(Turkish seat), the deepest part of which, the

hypophyseal fossa The sella turcica (Latin for 'Turkish saddle') is a saddle-shaped depression in the body of the sphenoid bone of the human skull and of the skulls of other hominids including chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans. It serves as a cephalometric ...

, lodges the

pituitary gland In vertebrate anatomy, the pituitary gland, or hypophysis, is an endocrine gland, about the size of a chickpea and weighing, on average, in humans. It is a protrusion off the bottom of the hypothalamus at the base of the brain. The ...

. The anterior boundary of the

is completed by two small eminences, one on either side, called the

middle clinoid process The anterior boundary of the sella turcica is completed by two small eminences, one on either side, called the middle clinoid processes. It is found lateral to the sella turcica. Etymology Clinoid likely comes from the Greek root ''klinein'' or ...

es, while the posterior boundary is formed by a square-shaped plate of bone, the

dorsum sellae The dorsum sellae is part of the sphenoid bone in the skull. Together with the basilar part of the occipital bone it forms the clivus. In the sphenoid bone, the anterior boundary of the sella turcica is completed by two small eminences, one on ...

, ending at its superior angles in two tubercles, the posterior clinoid processes, the size and form of which vary considerably in different individuals. The posterior clinoid processes deepen the sella turcica, and give attachment to the

tentorium cerebelli The cerebellar tentorium or tentorium cerebelli (Latin for "tent of the cerebellum") is an extension of the dura mater that separates the cerebellum from the inferior portion of the occipital lobes. Structure The cerebellar tentorium is an arche ...

. On either side of the dorsum sellae is a notch for the passage of the

abducent nerve The abducens nerve or abducent nerve, also known as the sixth cranial nerve, cranial nerve VI, or simply CN VI, is a cranial nerve in humans and various other animals that controls the movement of the lateral rectus muscle, one of the extraocul ...

, and below the notch a sharp process, the petrosal process, which articulates with the apex of the petrous portion of the

temporal bone The temporal bones are situated at the sides and base of the skull, and lateral to the temporal lobes of the cerebral cortex. The temporal bones are overlaid by the sides of the head known as the temples, and house the structures of the ears. Th ...

, and forms the medial boundary of the

foramen lacerum The foramen lacerum ( la, lacerated piercing) is a triangular hole in the base of skull. It is located between the sphenoid bone, the apex of the petrous part of the temporal bone, and the basilar part of the occipital bone. Structure The for ...

. Behind the dorsum sellae is a shallow depression, the clivus, which slopes obliquely backward, and is continuous with the groove on the basilar portion of the

occipital bone The occipital bone () is a neurocranium, cranial dermal bone and the main bone of the occiput (back and lower part of the skull). It is trapezoidal in shape and curved on itself like a shallow dish. The occipital bone overlies the occipital lobe ...

; it supports the upper part of the

pons The pons (from Latin , "bridge") is part of the brainstem that in humans and other bipeds lies inferior to the midbrain, superior to the medulla oblongata and anterior to the cerebellum. The pons is also called the pons Varolii ("bridge of Va ...

Lateral surfaces

The lateral surfaces of the body are united with the

greater wings of the sphenoid The greater wing of the sphenoid bone, or alisphenoid, is a bony process of the sphenoid bone; there is one on each side, extending from the side of the body of the sphenoid and curving upward, laterally, and backward. Structure The greater wi ...

and the

medial pterygoid plate The pterygoid processes of the sphenoid (from Greek ''pteryx'', ''pterygos'', "wing"), one on either side, descend perpendicularly from the regions where the body and the greater wings of the sphenoid bone unite. Each process consists of a me ...

s. Above the attachment of each greater wing is a broad groove, curved something like the italic letter f; it lodges the

internal carotid artery The internal carotid artery (Latin: arteria carotis interna) is an artery in the neck which supplies the anterior circulation of the brain. In human anatomy, the internal and external carotids arise from the common carotid arteries, where these b ...

and the

cavernous sinus The cavernous sinus within the human head is one of the dural venous sinuses creating a cavity called the lateral sellar compartment bordered by the temporal bone of the skull and the sphenoid bone, lateral to the sella turcica. Structure The cave ...

, and is named the carotid sulcus. Along the posterior part of the lateral margin of this groove, in the angle between the body and greater wing, is a ridge of bone, called the

sphenoidal lingula Along the posterior part of the lateral margin of the carotid groove of the sphenoid bone, in the angle between the body and great wing, is a ridge of bone, called the lingula. References External links * Bones of the head and neck ...

Posterior surfaces

The posterior surface, quadrilateral in form ig. 3 is joined, during infancy and adolescence, to the basilar part of the occipital bone by a plate of cartilage. Between the eighteenth and twenty-fifth years this becomes ossified, ossification commencing above and extending downward.

Anterior surface

The anterior surface of the body

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presents, in the middle line, a vertical crest, the sphenoidal crest, which articulates with the perpendicular plate of the

ethmoid The ethmoid bone (; from grc, ἡθμός, hēthmós, sieve) is an unpaired bone in the skull that separates the nasal cavity from the brain. It is located at the roof of the nose, between the two orbits. The cubical bone is lightweight due to a ...

, and forms part of the

nasal septum The nasal septum () separates the left and right airways of the Human nose, nasal cavity, dividing the two nostrils. It is Depression (kinesiology), depressed by the depressor septi nasi muscle. Structure The fleshy external end of the nasal ...

. On either side of the crest is an irregular opening leading into the corresponding

sphenoidal air sinus The sphenoid sinus is a paired paranasal sinus occurring within the within the body of the sphenoid bone. It represents one pair of the four paired paranasal sinuses.Illustrated Anatomy of the Head and Neck, Fehrenbach and Herring, Elsevier, 2012 ...

. These sinuses are two large, irregular cavities hollowed out of the interior of the body of the bone, and separated from one another by a bony

, which is commonly bent to one or the other side. They vary considerably in form and size, are seldom symmetrical, and are often partially subdivided by irregular bony laminae. Occasionally, they extend into the basilar part of the

nearly as far as the

foramen magnum The foramen magnum ( la, great hole) is a large, oval-shaped opening in the occipital bone of the skull. It is one of the several oval or circular openings (foramina) in the base of the skull. The spinal cord, an extension of the medulla oblon ...

. They begin to be developed before birth, and are of a considerable size by the age of six. They are partially closed, in front and below, by two thin, curved plates of bone, the

sphenoidal conchae The sphenoidal conchae (sphenoidal turbinated processes) are two thin, curved plates, situated at the anterior and lower part of the body of the sphenoid. An aperture of variable size exists in the anterior wall of each, and through this the sphen ...

, leaving in the articulated skull a round opening at the upper part of each sinus by which it communicates with the upper and back part of the nasal cavity and occasionally with the posterior ethmoidal air cells. The lateral margin of the anterior surface is serrated, and articulates with the

lamina papyracea The orbital lamina of ethmoid bone, (or lamina papyracea or orbital lamina) is a smooth, oblong bone plate which forms the lateral surface of the labyrinth of the ethmoid bone in the skull. The plate covers in the middle and posterior ethmoidal ...

of the

, completing the posterior ethmoidal cells; the lower margin articulates with the orbital process of the palatine bone, and the upper with the orbital plate of the frontal bone.

Inferior surface

The inferior surface presents, in the middle line, a triangular spine, the sphenoidal rostrum, which is continuous with the sphenoidal crest on the anterior surface, and is received in a deep fissure between the alæ of the vomer. On either side of the rostrum is a projecting lamina, the vaginal process, directed medialward from the base of the

, with which it will be described.

Additional Images

File:Slide23hhhh.JPG, Body of sphenoid bone File:Slide10jjjj.JPG, Body of sphenoid bone File:Slide5pppp.JPG, Body of sphenoid bone

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Body Of Sphenoid Bone Bones of the head and neck