Secondary motor area: Premotor cortex

Question 1

Localization

Answer 1

Frontal lobe: area 6 (convex surface)

Question 2

Characteristics

Answer 2

• agranular cortex (Betz cells are lacking)

- somatotopia (leg: dorsal, head: ventral)

Question 3

Function

Answer 3

• Programs skilled motor activity (mainly trunk and upper limb muscle)
• Directs primary motor area in its execution

Question 4

Afferents to premotor cortex

Answer 4

• From thalamus VA and VLa (input from striatum)
  commissural to contralateral premotor
• Visual area

Question 5

Efferents from premotor cortex

Answer 5

• Contributes to corticospinal tract
• to primary motor
• to reticular formation
• major projection to primary motor cortex