Introduction to the cortex Flashcards
What is Wernicke’s aphasia
a type of auditory agnosia
the individual is unable to understand language in its written or spoken form
What is Broca’s aphasia
individuals have trouble speaking fluently but their comprehension is relatively presevered (non fluent/expressive aphasia)
can be caused by a stroke
what is the name for face blindness
prosopagnosia
what is the name for difficultly understanding pitch and music
Amusia
what is ocular ataxia
difficulty controlling eye movement
what is the majority of the neocortex function
association area
integrates information from other brain regions
where cognition occurs
where does the cerebellum output to
projects to brainstems motor nuclei, vestibular nuclei, muscle spindles, motor and pre motor cortices via the thalamus
what are the cerebellar inputs (via the superior, middle and inferior peduncles
proprioception
spinal reflexes
visual, auditory and motion brainstem
somatosensory and premotor cortex via the olives
what are the three layers of the cerebellar cortex
molecular layer
purkinje cell layer
granule cell layer
what two types of information does the cerebellum mainly compare
ascendigng sensory information with descending premotor information and feeds back to the cerebral cortex
where is the primary auditory cortex
temporal lobe
also involves the medial geniculate nucleus which is part of the thalamus
where is the primary visual cortex
most posterior part of the occipital lobe
around the calcarine fissure
what are primary cortical regions
receive information from the thalamus with relatively little processing
where is the primary olfactory cortex
anterior temporal lobe (piriform cortex)
what are the two types of association areas
unimodal and poly modal
what are brodmann’s regions
a way of dividing up the cortex into 52 regions based on histology
how can we learn about the function of the neocortex
measure the effects of localised damage
electrical stimulation
scan brain activity
describe the nature of outputs from the neocortex
always excitatory in nature and always via pyramidal cells
excitatory neurotransmitters
where do all parts of the cortex project to
the thalamus
what is input to the basal ganglia
projections from the somatosensory and motor cortices
what is the function of the brainstem nuclei
deals with motor and sensory information from the cortex
where in the inputs to the neocortex
ascending information from the thalamus
ascending information from other sub cortical structures (hypothalamus, basal parts of the forebrain and the brain stem)
commisural fibres from pyramidal neurones which travel between
hemispheres
association fibres from pyramidal neurons which travel from the ipsilateral cortex either from distant areas of from neighbouring cortical columns
describe the layering of the somatosensory cortex
layers have different cell types and thus different connectivity and functionality
describe the columns in the somatosensory cortex
columns are associated with different modalities of sensation
what is the name of the sulcus above the temporal lobe
lateral sulcus
what is the cerebral cortex
the grey matter covering the surface of the cerebral hemispheres
what cell in the cortex provides many of the interconnections between cortical areas
pyramidal cells
primary auditory area
medial temporal lobe
primary visual cortex
occipital lobe
primary olfactory cortex
anterior temporal lobe
