Canal of Gratiolet

Last revised by Daniel J Bell on 17 Jul 2024

Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data

Citation:

Sharma R, Bell D, Feger J, Canal of Gratiolet. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 03 Aug 2024) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-192428

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-192428

Permalink:

https://radiopaedia.org/articles/192428

rID:

192428

Article created:

12 Jul 2024, Rohit Sharma ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was created Rohit Sharma had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.

View Rohit Sharma's current disclosures

Last revised:

17 Jul 2024, Daniel J Bell ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was last revised Daniel J Bell had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.

View Daniel J Bell's current disclosures

Revisions:

3 times, by 3 contributors - see full revision history and disclosures

Systems:

Central Nervous System

Sections:

Anatomy

Tags:

cases, illustration, neuroanatomy

Synonyms:

Gratiolet canal

The canal of Gratiolet refers to a thin layer of grey matter that circumferentially covers the white matter fibers of the anterior commissure, as it runs between the right and left basal ganglia across the midline.

The canal of Gratiolet begins in between the putamen and globus pallidus, where it envelopes the posterior fascicle (or limb or crus) of the anterior commissure, before following and continuing to envelop these white matter fibers as they run anteromedially where they join the anterior fascicle ^1-3. At this point the canal of Gratiolet then envelopes the whole of the anterior commissure as it crosses the midline, continuing its course symmetrically into the contralateral hemisphere ^1-3.

History and etymology

Louis Pierre Gratiolet (1815-1850) was a French anatomist ^4,5.

Clinical importance

While the function of the canal of Gratiolet is unknown, the canal may be a medium for the spread of intracerebral hemorrhage ^2,3. Indeed, there are a few case reports of patients with bilateral basal ganglia intracerebral hemorrhage where blood is seen on susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) to involve the canal of Gratiolet, with the hypothesis being that hemorrhage may have been unilateral initially but then tracked through the canal of Gratiolet to involve the contralateral basal ganglia ^2,3.