BIO 242 - brain regions and functions

frontal lobe

voluntary motor functions and frontal eye field

premotor cortex

plans and organizes learned/skilled movements

primary motor cortex

controls voluntary skeletal muscle activity

motor speech cortex

controls muscular movements for vocalization

parietal lobe

general sensory input related to touch and body position

primary somatosensory cortex

receives somatic sensory information

somatosensory association area

helps identify objects being sensed based on past sensory experiences

temporal lobe

hearing and smelling

primary olfactory cortex

provides conscious awareness of smells

primary auditory cortex

receives and process sounds

auditory association area

interprets sounds based on memories

occipital lobe

process and stores visual information

primary visual cortex

receives and processes visual information

visual association area

integrates visual information to form identity based on memory

insular lobe

memory and interpretation of taste

primary gustatory cortex

processing taste information

functional brain areas

integrate information between lobes

prefrontal cortex

complex thought, plan, and decision-making based on perceived consequences

Wernicke’s area

assigns meaning to spoken and written language

tracts

bundles of white matter that transfer information

association tracts

tracts that stay in the same hemisphere

arcuate fibers

tracts in the same hemisphere and lobe

longitudinal fasciculi

tracts in the same hemisphere and different lobes

commissural tracts

tracts between hemispheres

projection tracts

tracts that connect the cerebrum with other brain regions

thalamus

central relay point for sensory information

hypothalamus

regulates the endocrine system, autonomic nervous system (blood pressure, heart rate, respiration), pituitary, food and water intake, body temperature, circadian rhythms, and epithalamus, and is an important aspect of the limbic system

epithalamus

regulates the pineal gland and the habenular nuclei

pineal gland

melatonin (circadian rhythm)

habenular nuclei

visceral and emotional response to odors

cerebral peduncle

relays voluntary motor commands to the primary motor cortex

substania nigra

dopamine (pleasure/pain response)

tegmentum

integrates information between the cerebellum and cerebrum and aids in posture

tectum

visual and auditory reflexes

pontine respiratory center

regulates breathing muscles

superior olivary nuclei

hearing pathways, sound source localization

medulla oblongota

holds the decussation of the pyramids (contralateral), also regulates blood pressure and breathing rate (cardiovascular and respiratory centers)

cerebellum

coordinates and fine-tunes movements, helps with equilibrium and posture, and issues error correcting actions