Glossopharyngeal nerve
The glossopharyngeal nerve is the ninth (IX) of the twelve pairs of cranial nerves. It exits the brainstem out from the sides of the upper medulla, just rostral to the vagus nerve and has sensory, motor, and autonomic components.
On this page:
Images:
Gross anatomy
Origin
There are four cranial nerve nuclei in the lower pons and medulla:
- The sensory ganglion cells lie in the superior and inferior ganglia of the nerve, whos central processes passing to two nuclei:
- nucleus of the tractus solitarius, located in the dorsolateral medulla oblongata and lower pons, which conveys taste sensation from the posterior 3rd of the tongue and vallate papillae
- sensory nucleus of the trigeminal nerve, located in the caudal aspect of the pons , which conveys somatic sensation
- The motor fibers originate in the upper part of the nucleus ambiguus in the rostral pons which receives bilateral supranuclear innervation from the corticobulbar fibers. This nucleus supplies the stylopharyngeus muscle.
- The autonomic parasympathetic fibers arise in the inferior salivary nucleus located in the dorsal pons. These fibers are carried in the lesser petrosal nerve via the tympanic branch to the otic ganglion. The postganglionic fibers are distributed to the parotid gland via the auriculotemporal nerve.
Course
It exits the medulla oblongata from the postolivary sulcus, the glossopharyngeal nerve passes laterally across the flocculus, and leaves the skull through the pars nervosa of the jugular foramen in a separate sheath of the dura mater. It then passes between the internal jugular vein and internal carotid artery. It descends in front of the latter vessel, and beneath the styloid process and the muscles connected with it, to the lower border of the stylopharyngeus. It then curves forward, forming an arch on the side of the neck and lying upon the stylopharyngeus and middle pharyngeal constrictor muscle. From there it passes under a cover of the hyoglossus muscle, and is finally distributed to the palatine tonsil, the mucous membrane of the fauces and base of the tongue, and the mucous glands of the mouth.
Glossopharyngeal ganglia
In passing through the jugular foramen, the nerve presents two ganglia, the superior and the petrous:
- superior ganglion (jugular ganglion): situated in the upper part of the groove in which the nerve is lodged during its passage through the jugular foramen; it is very small and is usually regarded as a detached portion of the petrous ganglion
- inferior ganglion (petrous ganglion): larger than the superior and is situated in a depression in the lower border of the petrous portion of the temporal bone called the petrosal fossula
Branches
- tympanic nerve (nerve of Jacobson): the tympanic nerve exits the jugular foramen and passes by the inferior glossopharyngeal ganglion; it re-enters the skull through the inferior tympanic canaliculus and reaches the tympanic cavity where it forms a plexus (the tympanic plexus) in the middle ear cavity; the nerve travels from this plexus through a canal and out into the middle cranial fossa adjacent to the exit of the greater petrosal nerve; here the nerve becomes the lesser petrosal nerve; the lesser petrosal nerve exits the cranium via the foramen ovale and synapses in the otic ganglion. It supplies the inner surface of the tympanic membrane (the external surface is supplied by the auriculotemporal nerve and the greater auricular nerve).
- muscular branch: innervates the stylopharyngeus muscle
- carotid branches: (superior and inferior caroticotympanic nerves) descend along the trunk of the internal carotid artery as far as its origin, communicating with the pharyngeal branch of the vagus, and with branches of the sympathetic nerves
- pharyngeal branches: are three or four filaments which unite, opposite the middle pharyngeal constrictor with the pharyngeal branches of the vagus and sympathetic nerves, to form the pharyngeal plexus: branches from this plexus perforate the muscular coat of the pharynx and supply its muscles and mucous membrane
- tonsillar branches: supply the palatine tonsil, forming around it a plexus from which filaments are distributed to the soft palate and fauces, where they communicate with the greater and lesser palatine nerves
- lingual branches: are two in number; one supplies the vallate papillae and the mucous membrane covering the base of the tongue; the other supplies the mucous membrane and follicular glands of the posterior part of the tongue, and communicates with the lingual nerve
- sinus nerve, or "Hering's nerve": the branch of the glossopharyngeal nerve to the carotid sinus is the nerve that runs downwards anterior to the internal carotid artery communicates with the vagus and sympathetic then divides in the angle of bifurcation of the common carotid artery to supply the carotid body and carotid sinus; it carries impulses from the baroreceptors in the carotid sinus (to help maintain more consistent blood pressure) and from chemoreceptors in the carotid body
Supply
There are a number of functions of the glossopharyngeal nerve:
- receives general sensory fibers from the tonsils, the pharynx, the middle ear and the posterior one-third of the tongue
- receives special sensory fibers (taste) from the posterior one-third of the tongue
- receives visceral sensory fibers from the carotid bodies
- supplies parasympathetic fibers to the parotid gland via the otic ganglion
- supplies motor fibers to stylopharyngeus muscle, the only motor component of this cranial nerve
- contributes to the pharyngeal plexus
Related pathology
- absent gag reflex in patients with damage to the glossopharyngeal nerve: it is responsible for the afferent limb of the reflex
- glossopharyngeal neuralgia
Related Radiopaedia articles
Anatomy: Brain
-
brain
- grey matter
- white matter
-
cerebrum
-
cerebral hemisphere (telencephalon)
- cerebral lobes and gyri
- frontal lobe
- parietal lobe
-
occipital lobe
- occipital pole
- lingual gyrus
- fusiform gyrus (Brodmann area 37)
- calcarine (visual) cortex
- cuneus
- temporal lobe
- basal forebrain
- limbic system
- insula
-
cerebral sulci and fissures (A-Z)
- calcarine fissure
- callosal sulcus
- central (Rolandic) sulcus
- cingulate sulcus
- collateral sulcus
- inferior frontal sulcus
- inferior occipital sulcus
- inferior temporal sulcus
- interhemispheric fissure
- intraparietal sulcus
- lateral (Sylvian) sulcus
- lateral occipital sulcus
- marginal sulcus
- occipitotemporal sulcus
- olfactory sulcus
- paracentral sulcus
- paraolfactory sulcus
- parieto-occipital fissure
- posterior parolfactory sulcus
- precentral sulcus
- preoccipital notch
- postcentral sulcus
- rhinal sulcus
- rostral sulcus
- subparietal sulcus
- superior frontal sulcus
- superior occipital sulcus
- superior temporal sulcus
- cortical histology
- cerebral lobes and gyri
- white matter tracts
- deep grey matter
-
pituitary gland
- posterior pituitary and stalk (part of diencephalon)
- anterior pituitary
- inferior hypophyseal arterial circle
- diencephalon
-
cerebral hemisphere (telencephalon)
-
brainstem
- midbrain (mesencephalon)
- pons (part of metencephalon)
- medulla oblongata (myelencephalon)
- white matter
-
grey matter
- non-cranial nerve
-
cranial nerve nuclei
- oculomotor nucleus
- Edinger-Westphal nucleus
- trochlear nucleus
- motor nucleus of CN V
- mesencephalic nucleus of CN V
- main sensory nucleus of CN V
- spinal nucleus of CN V
- abducent nucleus
- facial nucleus
- superior salivatory nucleus
- cochlear nuclei
- vestibular nuclei
- inferior salivatory nucleus
- solitary tract nucleus
- ambiguus nucleus
- dorsal vagal motor nucleus
- hypoglossal nucleus
-
cerebellum (part of metencephalon)
- vermis
- cerebellar hemisphere
- cerebellar peduncles
- cranial meninges (meninx primitiva)
- CSF spaces
-
cranial nerves (mnemonic)
- olfactory nerve (CN I)
- optic nerve (CN II)
- oculomotor nerve (CN III)
- trochlear nerve (CN IV)
- trigeminal nerve (CN V) (mnemonic)
- abducens nerve (CN VI)
- facial nerve (CN VII) (segments mnemonic | branches mnemonic)
-
vestibulocochlear nerve (CN VIII)
- vestibular ganglion (Scarpa's ganglion)
- glossopharyngeal nerve (CN IX)
- vagus nerve (CN X)
- spinal accessory nerve (CN XI)
- hypoglossal nerve (CN XII)
- functional neuroanatomy
- CNS development
- cerebral vascular supply
- arteries
- vascular territories
-
circle of Willis
- internal carotid artery (ICA) (segments)
- vertebral artery
-
normal variants
- intracranial arterial fenestration
- internal carotid artery (ICA)
- anterior cerebral artery (ACA)
- middle cerebral artery (MCA)
- posterior cerebral artery (PCA)
- basilar artery
- persistent carotid-vertebrobasilar artery anastomoses (mnemonic)
- vertebral artery
- ophthalmic artery
-
cerebral venous system
-
dural venous sinuses
- basilar venous plexus
- cavernous sinus (mnemonic)
- clival diploic veins
- inferior petro-occipital vein
- inferior petrosal sinus
- inferior sagittal sinus
- intercavernous sinus
- internal carotid artery venous plexus of Rektorzik
- jugular bulb
- marginal sinus
- occipital sinus
- sigmoid sinus
- sphenoparietal sinus
- straight sinus
- superior petrosal sinus
- superior sagittal sinus
- torcula herophili
- transverse sinus
-
cerebral veins
-
superficial veins of the brain
- superior cerebral veins (superficial cerebral veins)
- inferior cerebral veins
- superficial middle cerebral vein
- superior anastomotic vein (of Trolard)
- inferior anastomotic vein (of Labbe)
-
superficial veins of the brain
- deep veins of the brain
- normal variants
-
dural venous sinuses
- arteries
- glymphatic pathway