In neuroscience

Neuroscience

Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...

, a motor pool refers to a group of motor spinal neurons that innervate the same muscle

Muscle

Muscle is a contractile tissue of animals and is derived from the mesodermal layer of embryonic germ cells. Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to...

. The biological significance of motor pool organization is in the fact that motor pools with many neurons produce finer movements. For example, the motor unit of muscles in the torso

Torso

Trunk or torso is an anatomical term for the central part of the many animal bodies from which extend the neck and limbs. The trunk includes the thorax and abdomen.-Major organs:...

 will control more muscle fibers and so cannot discriminate and selectively contract one particular fiber over another. In finger

Finger

A finger is a limb of the human body and a type of digit, an organ of manipulation and sensation found in the hands of humans and other primates....

s, the muscles will have a higher proportion of neurons innervating similar muscles, thus allowing for more precise movements.