• A column of nerve tissue that runs from the base of the skull down the back. It is surrounded by three protective membranes, and is enclosed within the vertebrae (back bones). The spinal cord and the brain make up the central nervous system, and spinal cord nerves carry most messages between the brain and the rest of the body.
  NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms
  U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
• A cylindrical column of tissue that lies within the vertebral canal. It is composed of WHITE MATTER and GRAY MATTER.
  NLM Medical Subject Headings
  U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2025
• Caudalmost subdivision of neuraxis that consists of neural tissue (which is organized into gray matter and white matter) and the central canal (cavity of organ part); it is embryologically derived from the caudal part of the neural tube. Together with the brain, the spinal cord constitutes the neuraxis. Examples: There is only one spinal cord.
  Digital Anatomist
  University of Washington, 2003
• Segment of neuraxis which consists of portion of neural tissue continuous with and caudal to brain, surround central canal and contained in space of vertebral canal.
  Foundational Model of Anatomy
  University of Washington, 2017
• That part of the central nervous system which is lodged in the vertebral canal; it is composed of an inner core of gray matter in which nerve cells predominate, and an outer layer of white matter in which myelinated nerve fibers predominate; it is enclosed in three protective membranes, the meninges.
  CRISP Thesaurus
  National Institutes of Health, 2006
• The elongated, approximately cylindrical part of the central nervous system of vertebrates that lies in the vertebral canal and from which the spinal nerves emerge.
  NCI
  U.S. National Cancer Institute, 2021
• The portion of the central nervous system that lies within the vertebral canal and from which the spinal nerves emerge.
  CDISC Terminology
  Clinical Data Interchange Standards Consortium (CDISC), 2021
• The spinal cord is a long, fragile tubelike structure that begins at the end of the brain stem and continues down almost to the bottom of the spine. The spinal cord consists of bundles of nerve axons forming pathways that carry incoming and outgoing messages between the brain and the rest of the body. The spinal cord contains nerve cell...
  Merck Manuals
  Merck & Co., Inc., 2025
• Spinal cord, major nerve tract of vertebrates, extending from the base of the brain through the canal of the spinal column. It is composed of nerve fibres that mediate reflex actions and that transmit impulses to and from the brain. Like the brain, the spinal cord is covered by three...
  Encyclopedia Britannica
  Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2025