Cerebral Cortex and Function

Flashcards covering key terms and concepts related to the cerebral cortex and its functions.

Cerebral Cortex

The outer layer of the brain responsible for higher brain functions, including voluntary movement, sensory perception, and cognition.

Motor Areas

Regions of the cerebral cortex that control voluntary movements.

Sensory Areas

Regions of the cerebral cortex that are involved in conscious awareness of sensation.

Association Areas

Regions of the cerebral cortex that integrate diverse information from various sensory areas.

Contralateral Function

The principle that each cerebral hemisphere controls the sensory and motor functions of the opposite side of the body.

Cerebral Dominance

The tendency for one hemisphere of the brain to be more involved in certain functions, most commonly language.

Broca’s Area

A region in the left hemisphere involved in speech production; damage leads to difficulty in speaking.

Wernicke’s Area

A region in the left hemisphere involved in understanding spoken and written language; damage leads to nonsensical speech.

Lateralization

The specialization of functions in the two hemispheres of the brain.

Primary Somatosensory Cortex

Located in the postcentral gyrus, this cortex receives sensory information from the body and is capable of spatial discrimination.

Multimodal Association Areas

Cortical regions that receive input from multiple sensory areas and integrate that information for complex cognitive tasks.

Cerebral White Matter

Myelinated fibers in the brain that facilitate communication between different brain areas; categorized into association, commissural, and projection fibers.

Ascending Tracts

Nerve pathways in the spinal cord that carry sensory information to the brain.

Descending Tracts

Nerve pathways in the spinal cord that carry motor commands from the brain to the body.

Projection Fibers

Vertical fibers that connect the cerebral cortex with lower brain regions or the spinal cord.

Projection Fibers

Vertical fibers that connect the cerebral cortex to lower areas of the brain or spinal cord.

Cortex Damage

Injury to certain areas of the cerebral cortex can lead to paralysis or sensory loss depending on the affected region.