The substantia nigra is made up of two parts, the pars compacta (SNpc) and the pars reticulata (SNpr), sometimes there is a reference to the pars lateralis but that is usually included as part of the pars reticulata. The ‘’black substance’’ that the term translates as, refers to the neuromelanin found in the dopaminergic neurons. These are found in a darker region of the SNpc. The SNpr is a lighter coloured region. There are similar cells in the substantia nigra and the globus pallidus. Both parts receive input from the striatopallidal fibres.