What are the brains stored in?
a preservative solution called formaldehyde
What are the three meninges in order from outermost to innermost?
dura mater, arachnoid layer, pia mater
What are the functions of the meninges?
- to provide physical protection to the brain in case of head injury
- to contain the CSF that bathes the brain
What are gyri and sulci?
gyri are ridges, sulci are grooves
Why is the human brain so gyrus-rich? What is the consequence of this anatomical feature of the human brain?
the folding patterns on the brain allow for a much larger surface area of cerebral cortex to be packed into a small volume skull
What is the name of the major fissure that runs the length of the dorsal surface of the brain and separates the two hemipsheres from one another?
the longitudinal fissure (also called cerebral fissure, great longitudinal fissure,medial longitudinal fissure, or interhemispheric fissure)
What is the large groove extending from below the ventral frontal lobe, caudally, towards the back of the brain?
the lateral or sylvian fissure
What is the cortex found witihin the sylvian fissure?
the insular cortex
The insular cortex has structures involved in what processes?
taste, smell, and interoception
What is interoception?
the perception of the bodily feelings that you experience- feelings like disgust, craving, or sadness
What can damage to the insula do?
- it can impair interoceptive feelings, which would seem to be bad
- from a positive perspective, insular damage also eliminates drug/alcohol craving and has been associated with successful attempts to quit smoking/drinking/drugs
What is the cortext that lays directly on the bones that surround your orbits (eyes)?
the oribital frontal cortex
What happened to Phineas Gage?
he experienced an injury to the orbital frontal cortex and suffered significant changes in his behavior as a result
People with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementai experience neurodegenerative loss in which part of the frontal lobe?
the orbital frontal cortex
What is the function of the orbitofrontal cortex?
- allows us to control our behavior and emotions
- when damaged, people seem more prone to losing control of their behavior/emotions
Where are the optic nerves and chiasm located?
around the juncture between the frontal lobe and more caudal cerebrum, near the medial plane
Explain the route for the optic nerves and chiasm
the optic nerves and chiasm include axons that are connected to ganglion cells in the retina and are traveling to synapse in the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus
What is the major blood vessel that is shaped like an inverted Y and runs rostrally to caudally along the medial plane of the pons?
the basilar artery
What structures does the basilar artery carry oxygenated blood to?
the brain stem and cerebellum
What structures are two “humps” located just caudal to the optic chiasm?
mammillary bodies
What is known about the clinical consequences of damage to the mammillary bodies?
- Damage to the mammillary bodies causes severe memory deficits
- Damage to these structures happens in Korsakoff syndrome, a dementia usually caused by severe alcohol use
What is the most medial part of the temporal lobe?
the hippocampus
Where did the hippocampus get its name?
because it has a “seahorse” like structure
What happened to Henry Molaison (HM) when he experienced surgical injury to his hippocampus?
temporally graded retrograde amnesia, anterograde amnesia
