Brain Regions beginning with C

Glossary of brain regions
Click one of the letters above to go to the page of all terms beginning with that letter.
callosal isthmus search for term

the narrowest part of the corpus callosum, at the posterior, where parts of the parietal cortex and superior temporal cortex are connected across the hemispheres

caudate nucleus search for term

is located in the basal ganglia; with the putamen, it forms that part of the basal ganglia known as the striatum. also see left caudate

cerebellum search for term

is the main structure in the hindbrain, situated at the base of the brain, at the top of the spinal cord. The cerebellum controls our balance and postural stability, and is involved in motor coordination - not, it appears, in the initial learning of motor skills, but in the performance and improvement of learned motor skills. Some regions of the cerebellum are especially vulnerable to the effects of chronic alcoholism. The hindbrain, although far from the frontal lobes, is connected to those regions, most especially through the pons and the thalamus. Recent rat studies have also suggested that the cerebellum may be involved in some way in remembering strong emotions, in particular, in the consolidation of long-term memories of fear. There is also growing evidence that the cerebellum might also be involved in processing speech and language.

cerebral cortex search for term

the gray matter outer layer of the cerebrum. The newest part of the brain in evolutionary terms; responsible for primary sensory functions, motor coordination and control, and most particularly, the "higher-order" functions of language and thinking.

cerebrum search for term

the largest structure of the brain; containing the cerebral cortex (the outer layer), which is made of gray matter, and an inner core composed of white matter (myelinated nerve fibers and gray basal ganglia); divided into a number of regions known as lobes.

cingulate gyrus search for term

gyrus (fold) in the limbic lobe; implicated in self-reflective thought (thinking about yourself and your attributes).

claustrum search for term

a thin cell mass separating the putamen from the insula cortex; part of the basal ganglia.

cornu ammonis search for term

a substructure of the hippocampus, highly active during encoding (learning) of face-name pairs. (also see dentate gyrus and subiculum)

corona radiata search for term

sheet of white matter that is continuous with the internal capsule (they meet at the putamen)

corpus callosum search for term

the main "bridge" between the left and right cerebral hemispheres; a broad bundle of myelinated fibers (white matter) carrying information from regions in one lobe to similarly placed regions in the opposing lobe. There are some 300 million fibers in the average corpus callosum. Cutting the corpus callosum prevents communication between the hemispheres (creating the well-known "split-brain" cases), and is used in severe cases of epilepsy.

cuneus search for term

located in the medial occipital lobe; involved in visual processing -- it contains part of the primary visual striate cortex and extrastriate visual cortex

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