Agranular insula is a portion of the cerebral cortex

Cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex is a sheet of neural tissue that is outermost to the cerebrum of the mammalian brain. It plays a key role in memory, attention, perceptual awareness, thought, language, and consciousness. It is constituted of up to six horizontal layers, each of which has a different...

 defined on the basis of internal structure in the human, the macaque, the rat, and the mouse. Classified as allocortex

Allocortex

The allocortex is a part of the cerebral cortex characterized by fewer cell layers than the neocortex The allocortex (also known as heterogenetic cortex) is a part of the cerebral cortex characterized by fewer cell layers than the neocortex The allocortex (also known as heterogenetic cortex) is a...

 (periallocortex), it is in primates distinguished from adjacent neocortex

Neocortex

The neocortex , also called the neopallium and isocortex , is a part of the brain of mammals. It is the outer layer of the cerebral hemispheres, and made up of six layers, labelled I to VI...

(proisocortex) by absence of the external granular layer (II) and of the internal granular layer (IV). It occupies the anterior part of the insula, the posterior portion of the orbital gyri and the medial part of the temporal pole. In rodents it is located on the ventrolateral surface of the cortex rostrally, between the piriform area ventrally and the gustatory area or the visceral area (granular insular cortex) dorsally.

External links

• More information at BrainInfo