Brain Lobes and Cerebral Cortex Overview

Introduction

• Discussion on the cerebral cortex and its lobes.
• Focus on four main lobes: Frontal, Temporal, Parietal, Occipital.
• Brief mention of the Insula (not covered in detail).

Brain Lobes

1. Frontal Lobe

• Primary Motor Cortex (PMC):
  • Involved in voluntary movement.
  • Controls contralateral sides (e.g., left PMC controls right side).
• Motor Association Cortex:
  • Includes Premotor and Supplementary Motor Cortex.
  • Planning, sequencing, and execution of movement.
• Frontal Eye Fields:
  • Involved in voluntary eye movements.
• Prefrontal Cortex:
  • Functions: memory, learning, personality, behavior, judgment, reasoning, decision making.
• Broca's Area:
  • Involved in speech production.

2. Temporal Lobe

• Primary Auditory Cortex:
  • Awareness of sound, pitch, frequency, and localization.
• Auditory Association Cortex:
  • Analyzes and recognizes sounds, storing them in memory.
• Wernicke's Area:
  • Comprehension of language (written and spoken).
• Primary Olfactory Cortex:
  • Awareness and recognition of smell.

3. Parietal Lobe

• Primary Somatosensory Cortex:
  • Awareness of somatic sensations (fine touch, proprioception, vibration, pressure).
• Somatosensory Association Cortex:
  • Analyzes and recognizes somatic sensations.
• Posterior Association Area:
  • Multimodal association area for spatial coordination of stimuli.

4. Occipital Lobe

• Primary Visual Cortex:
  • Conscious awareness of visual stimuli.
• Visual Association Cortex:
  • Analyzes visual stimuli (color, movement, angles).

Insula

• Functions:
  • Awareness of taste and its qualities (sweet, sour, bitter, salty, umami).
  • Awareness of visceral sensations (GI tract, heart, lungs).
  • Potentially where vestibular cortex is located (sense of movement).

Key Demarcations/Sulci

• Central Sulcus: Separates frontal and parietal lobes.
• Lateral Sulcus (Sylvian Fissure): Separates temporal lobe from frontal and parietal lobes.
• Parieto-Occipital Sulcus: Separates parietal and occipital lobes.
• Pre-Occipital Notch: Imaginary line separates occipital from temporal.

Conclusion

• Overviewed cerebral cortex and lobes.
• Discussed functional areas and their roles.
• Encouraged further engagement and exploration.