<P> The basic configuration of a vertebra varies ; the large part is the body , and the central part is the centrum . The upper and lower surfaces of the vertebra body give attachment to the intervertebral discs . The posterior part of a vertebra forms a vertebral arch , in eleven parts , consisting of two pedicles , two laminae , and seven processes . The laminae give attachment to the ligamenta flava ( ligaments of the spine ) . There are vertebral notches formed from the shape of the pedicles , which form the intervertebral foramina when the vertebrae articulate . These foramina are the entry and exit conducts for the spinal nerves . The body of the vertebra and the vertebral arch form the vertebral foramen , the larger , central opening that accommodates the spinal canal , which encloses and protects the spinal cord . </P>
<P> The basic configuration of a vertebra varies ; the large part is the body , and the central part is the centrum . The upper and lower surfaces of the vertebra body give attachment to the intervertebral discs . The posterior part of a vertebra forms a vertebral arch , in eleven parts , consisting of two pedicles , two laminae , and seven processes . The laminae give attachment to the ligamenta flava ( ligaments of the spine ) . There are vertebral notches formed from the shape of the pedicles , which form the intervertebral foramina when the vertebrae articulate . These foramina are the entry and exit conducts for the spinal nerves . The body of the vertebra and the vertebral arch form the vertebral foramen , the larger , central opening that accommodates the spinal canal , which encloses and protects the spinal cord . </P>
what runs through the center of the vertebral column
what runs through the center of the vertebral column
spinal cord
spinal cord