Which mythical Titan shares his name with the first cervical vertebrae in humans?
Cervical vertebrae plexus. The cervical spinal nerves emerge from above the cervical vertebrae. For example, the cervical spinal nerve 3 (C3) passes above C3. The atlas (C1) and axis (C2) are the two topmost vertebrae. The atlas, C1, is the topmost vertebra, and along with the axis; forms the joint connecting the skull and spine. Its chief peculiarity is that it has no body because the body of the atlas has been fused with that of the axis. The axis, C2, forms the pivot on which the atlas rotates. The most distinctive characteristic of this bone is the strong odontoid process (dens)
Cervical vertebrae are small and completely fused to the vertebrae. The vertebral transverse processes of mammals are homologous to the cervical ribs of other amniotes. Most mammals have 7 cervical vertebrae. In humans, cervical vertebrae are the smallest of the true vertebrae, and can be readily distinguished from those of the thoracic or lumbar regions by the presence of a foramen (hole) in each transverse process, through which the vertebral artery, vertebral veins and inferior cervical ganglion passes. The remainder of this article focuses upon human anatomy. By convention, the cervical vertebrae are numbered, with the first one (C1) closest to the