Cerebral Cortex and Brain Lobes

Main Lobes of the Brain

• Frontal Lobe
  • Located at the front of the brain
  • Involved in voluntary movement, planning, and decision-making
• Temporal Lobe
  • Located near the temples
  • Involved in auditory processing and language comprehension
• Parietal Lobe
  • Located at the top of the brain
  • Involved in processing sensory information
• Occipital Lobe
  • Located at the back of the brain
  • Responsible for visual processing
• Insular Cortex (Insula)
  • Not covered in detail
  • Functions include taste perception and visceral sensation

Important Sulci and Fissures

• Central Sulcus
  • Separates the frontal and parietal lobes
• Lateral Sulcus (Sylvian Fissure)
  • Separates the temporal lobe from the frontal and parietal lobes
• Parieto-Occipital Sulcus
  • Separates the parietal and occipital lobes
• Pre-Occipital Notch
  • Marks the separation between the occipital and temporal lobes

Functional Areas of the Frontal Lobe

• Primary Motor Cortex (PMC)
  • Controls voluntary movement
  • Contralateral control (left PMC controls right side)
• Motor Association Cortex
  • Involved in planning, sequencing, and execution of movement
• Frontal Eye Fields
  • Controls voluntary eye movement
• Prefrontal Cortex
  • Responsible for memory, learning, personality, behavior, and decision-making
• Broca's Area
  • Involved in speech production

Functional Areas of the Temporal Lobe

• Primary Auditory Cortex
  • Responsible for perception and awareness of sound
• Auditory Association Cortex
  • Analyzes and helps recognize sound
• Wernicke’s Area
  • Involved in language comprehension
• Primary Olfactory Cortex
  • Involved in the awareness of smell

Functional Areas of the Parietal Lobe

• Primary Somatosensory Cortex
  • Awareness of somatic sensations (touch, proprioception)
• Somatosensory Association Cortex
  • Analyzes and recognizes somatic sensations
• Posterior Association Area
  • Multimodal association area for sensory stimuli integration

Functional Areas of the Occipital Lobe

• Primary Visual Cortex
  • Awareness of visual stimuli
• Visual Association Cortex
  • Analyzes visual stimuli (color, movement, angles)

Insular Cortex Functions

• Taste Perception
  • Awareness and identification of taste sensations
• Visceral Sensations
  • Awareness of sensations from GI tract, heart, lungs
• Vestibular Sensations
  • Involved in balance and spatial orientation

Summary

• Overview of the cerebral cortex lobes and their functions
• Functional areas and their roles in sensory processing and motor control

Note: This summary captures the key points from a lecture on the cerebral cortex and its lobes. It includes the main lobes, sulci, and functional areas discussed.