Anterolateral system

Ascending sensory pathways located in the anterior (ventral) and lateral parts of the spinal cord and brainstem that convey information about pain, temperature, and crude touch to the thalamus (ventral posterior lateral nucleus and medial thalamic nuclei); other targets of these ascending projections include the reticular formation, periaqueductal gray, superior colliculus, and the vestibular nuclei. These axons originate in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord, where they decussate (cross the midline) near the level of their cell bodies of origin.