Neuroscience: Brain Structures, Ventricles, and Functions

Brain

orgran thar processes sensory information, controls. motor functions, houses cognition and emotion

gray matter

brain tissue made of neuron cell bodies, responsible for processing and integration

white matter

brain tissue made of myelinated axons, responsible for communication between brain regions

ventricles

fluid filled cavities in the brain that produce and circulate cerebrospinal fluid CSF

cerebrospinal CSF

fluid that cushions the brain, removes waste, and transports nutrients

choroid plexus

specialized tissue in ventricles that produces CSF

lateral ventricles

paired ventricles located in each cerebral hemisphere

septum pellucidum

thin membrane separating the two lateral ventricles

interventricular foramen

channel that connects the lateral ventricles to the third ventricle

third ventricle

midline ventricle located within the diencephalon

cerebral (mesencephalic) aqueduct

narrow passage connecting the third ventricle to the fourth ventricle

fourth ventricle

ventricle between the pons/cerebellum that drains into the central canal and subarachnoid space

cerebral hemisphere (cerebrum)

the largest part of the brain, responsible for higher thinking, sensation, and voluntary movement

gyrus (gyui)

ridges of the brain tissue

precentral gyrus

primary motor cortex (voluntary movement)

postcentral gyrus

primary somatosenosry cortez (touch, pressure, pain)

sulcus (sulci)

shallow grooves between gyri

central sulcus

separates frontal and parietal lobes

parieto- occipital sulcus

separates parietal and occipital lobes

lateral sulcus

separates temporal lobe from frontal/parietal lobes

fissures

deep grooves in the brain

longitudinal fissure

separates the right and left hemispheres

transverse cerebral fissure

separates cerebrum from cerebellum

frontal lobe

involved in planning, reasoning, movement, and personality

parietal lobe

processes sensory information (touch, spatial awareness)

occipital lobe

primary visual processing center

temporal lobe

hearing, memory, adn language comprehension

insula (insular lobe)

deep lobe involved in taste, emotion, and internal sensation

cortex

outer layer of gray matter responsible for higher cognitive processing

corpus callosum

large white matter tract connecting the two hemispheres

basal nuclei

deep gray matter involved in motor control and habit formation

diencephalon

region consisting of the thalamus, hypothalamus, and epithalamus

thalamus

relay station for sensory information entering the brain

hypothalamus

regulates homeostasis, hunger, thirst, temp, and endocrine function

mammillary bodies

involved in memory processing

infundibulum

stalk connection hypothalamus in the pituitary glands

pituitary glands

major endocrine gland that releases hormones

epithalamus

contains the pineal gland, involved in sleep/wake cycles

pineal gland

produces melatonin, regulates circadian rhythm