Final Common Pathway (for Horizontal Eye Movements)
Here we show that the left frontal eye field drives the eyes to the right as follows:
- The left frontal eye field projects to the right abducens nucleus.
- The CN 6 motor neurons, then, innervate the ipsilateral lateral rectus muscle (LR), which drives the ipsilateral eye to the right (it abducts it).
- The CN 6 interneurons send fibers up the contralateral MLF to the oculomotor nucleus to innervate the medial rectus, which drives the eye to the right (it adducts the eye).
Internuclear ophthalmoplegia
- See Internuclear ophthalmoplegia to see what happens there is injury to the MLF tract.