What is "glossopharyngeal nerve"

n. sensory nerve to the pharynx and back of the tongue; motor fibers innervate muscles that elevate the pharynx and larynx; includes parasympathetic fibers to the otic ganglion [syn: nervus glossopharyngeus, ninth cranial nerve]

The glossopharyngeal nerve, known as the ninth cranial nerve (CN IX), is a mixed nerve that carries afferent sensory and efferent motor information. It exits the brainstem out from the sides of the upper medulla, just rostral (closer to the nose) to the vagus nerve. The motor division of the glossopharyngeal nerve is derived from the basal plate of the embryonic medulla oblongata, while the sensory division originates from the cranial neural crest.