In Slice W, which structures are shown?

In Slice W, which structures are shown?

• A. Body of lateral ventricle; Supramarginal gyrus; Angular gyrus (Face, Lips)
• B. Choroid plexus, Atrium, Wernicke area (jaw, tongue)
• C. Wernicke area (swallowing)
• D. Third ventricle; Quadrigeminal cistern; Sylvian fissure

Answer: (B)

In a cross-sectional image like Slice W, you’re looking for features that sit together in the same plane: ventricular contents and nearby cortex. The choroid plexus is a vascular, tufted structure lining the ventricles, and on an axial view through the lateral ventricle you’d expect to see it near the roof of the ventricle. The atrium (the trigone) is the central region where the body, posterior horn, and temporal/occipital parts of the lateral ventricle meet, so an axial slice at that level would include this region of the lateral ventricle as well. The Wernicke area sits in the superior temporal gyrus of the dominant hemisphere, close to the Sylvian fissure, so a slice that captures the lateral ventricle alongside the posterior temporal cortex can show both the choroid plexus/atrium and the Wernicke area. That combination—ventricular contents (choroid plexus and atrium) plus the posterior temporal language cortex (Wernicke area)—fits Slice W best. The other options would require seeing parietal gyri in a way that isn’t coherent with the ventricle content shown here, attribute swallowing to a cortical area that isn’t Wernicke’s, or depict midline structures like the third ventricle and brainstem cisterns that aren’t consistent with a lateral-ventricle–temporal-lobe slice.

In a cross-sectional image like Slice W, you’re looking for features that sit together in the same plane: ventricular contents and nearby cortex. The choroid plexus is a vascular, tufted structure lining the ventricles, and on an axial view through the lateral ventricle you’d expect to see it near the roof of the ventricle. The atrium (the trigone) is the central region where the body, posterior horn, and temporal/occipital parts of the lateral ventricle meet, so an axial slice at that level would include this region of the lateral ventricle as well. The Wernicke area sits in the superior temporal gyrus of the dominant hemisphere, close to the Sylvian fissure, so a slice that captures the lateral ventricle alongside the posterior temporal cortex can show both the choroid plexus/atrium and the Wernicke area.

That combination—ventricular contents (choroid plexus and atrium) plus the posterior temporal language cortex (Wernicke area)—fits Slice W best. The other options would require seeing parietal gyri in a way that isn’t coherent with the ventricle content shown here, attribute swallowing to a cortical area that isn’t Wernicke’s, or depict midline structures like the third ventricle and brainstem cisterns that aren’t consistent with a lateral-ventricle–temporal-lobe slice.