Definition: The paired bundles of nerve fibers entering and leaving the spinal cord at each segment. The dorsal and ventral nerve roots join to form the mixed segmental spinal nerves. The dorsal roots are generally afferent, formed by the central projections of the spinal (dorsal root) ganglia sensory cells, and the ventral roots efferent, comprising the axons of spinal motor and autonomic preganglionic neurons. There are, however, some exceptions to this afferent/efferent rule.
