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Sulcus (neuroanatomy)
 
 
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In neuroanatomy
Neuroanatomy

Neuroanatomy is the branch of anatomy that studies the anatomical organization of the nervous system. In vertebrate animals, the peripheral nervous system that the myriad nerves take from the brain to the rest of the body , and the internal structure of the brain in particular, are both extremely elaborate....
, a sulcus (Latin
Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
: "furrow", pl. sulci) is a depression or fissure in the surface of the brain. It surrounds the gyri
Gyrus

A gyrus is a ridge on the Cerebral cortex. It is generally surrounded by one or more sulcus ....
, creating the characteristic appearance of the brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
 in human
Human

A human being, also human or man, is a member of a species of bipedalism primates in the family Hominidae . Mitochondrial DNA evidence indicates that modern humans originated in east Africa about 200,000 years ago....
s and other large mammal
Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
s.

Large furrows (sulci) that divide the brain into lobe
Lobe

The term lobe generally refers to a projecting part of an object, but it can have more specific meanings.* In biology, lobe * In telecommunication, the term lobe has the following meanings: ...
s are often called fissures.






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Gray726
In neuroanatomy
Neuroanatomy

Neuroanatomy is the branch of anatomy that studies the anatomical organization of the nervous system. In vertebrate animals, the peripheral nervous system that the myriad nerves take from the brain to the rest of the body , and the internal structure of the brain in particular, are both extremely elaborate....
, a sulcus (Latin
Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
: "furrow", pl. sulci) is a depression or fissure in the surface of the brain. It surrounds the gyri
Gyrus

A gyrus is a ridge on the Cerebral cortex. It is generally surrounded by one or more sulcus ....
, creating the characteristic appearance of the brain
Brain

The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate, and most invertebrate, animals. Some primitive animals such as cnidarian and echinoderm have a decentralized nervous system without a brain, while sponges lack any nervous system at all....
 in human
Human

A human being, also human or man, is a member of a species of bipedalism primates in the family Hominidae . Mitochondrial DNA evidence indicates that modern humans originated in east Africa about 200,000 years ago....
s and other large mammal
Mammal

Mammals are a class of vertebrate animals whose name is derived from their distinctive feature, mammary glands, with which they feed their young....
s.

Large furrows (sulci) that divide the brain into lobe
Lobe

The term lobe generally refers to a projecting part of an object, but it can have more specific meanings.* In biology, lobe * In telecommunication, the term lobe has the following meanings: ...
s are often called fissures. The large furrow that divides the two hemispheres - the interhemispheric fissure
Medial longitudinal fissure

The great longitudinal fissure is the deep groove which separates the two cerebral hemisphere of the vertebrate brain.The falx cerebri, a dura mater meninges, lies within the medial longitudinal fissure....
 - is very rarely called a "sulcus".

Individual variation

The sulcal pattern varies between human individuals, and the most elaborate overview on this variation is probably an atlas by Ono, Kubick and Abernathey: Atlas of the Cerebral Sulci. Some of the larger sulci are, however, seen across individuals - and even species - so it is possible to establish a nomenclature.

Gyrification across species

The variation in the amount of fissures in the brain (gyrification) between species is more related to the overall size of the animal rather than the encephalization
Encephalization

Encephalization is defined as the amount of brain mass exceeding that related Brain to body mass ratio. Quantifying an animal's encephalization has been argued to be directly related to that animal's level of intelligence....
. That is, large animals have many sulci:
"[L]arge rodents such as beaver
Beaver

Beavers are two primarily nocturnal, semi-aquatic species of rodent, one native to North America and one to Eurasia. They are known for building dams, canals, and lodges ....
s (40 pounds) and capybara
Capybara

Capybara , also known as capibara, chig?ire in Venezuela, chig?iro, and carpincho in Spanish language, and capivara in Portuguese language, is the largest living rodent in the world....
s (150 pounds) have many more sulci than smaller rodents such as rats and mice - but also more fissures than smaller monkeys".


Notable sulci

  • Lateral sulcus
    Lateral sulcus

    The lateral sulcus is one of the most prominent structures of the human brain....
    ,     lat. sulcus lateralis with 3 branches: ramus ascendens, ramus anterior, and ramus posterior
  • Central sulcus
    Central sulcus

    The central Sulcus is a fold in the cerebral cortex of brains in vertebrates. Also called the central fissure, it was originally called the fissure of Rolando or the Rolandic fissure, after Luigi Rolando....
    ,     lat. sulcus centralis
  • Postcentral sulcus
    Postcentral sulcus

    The postcentral sulcus of the parietal lobe lies parallel to, and behind, the central sulcus in the human brain. The postcentral sulcus divides the postcentral gyrus from the remainder of the parietal lobe....
    ,     lat. sulcus postcentralis
  • Precentral sulcus
    Precentral sulcus

    The precentral sulcus lies parallel to, and in front of, the central sulcus. The precentral sulcus divides the inferior frontal gyrus, middle frontal gyrus, and superior frontal gyrus frontal gyri from the precentral gyrus....
    ,     lat. sulcus praecentralis
  • Cingulate sulcus
    Cingulate sulcus

    The cingulate sulcus is a sulcus on the medial wall of the cerebral cortex....
    ,     lat. sulcus cinguli
Subcallosal sulcus, lat. sulcus corporis callosi
  • Superior frontal sulcus
    Superior frontal sulcus

    The superior frontal sulcus is a Sulcus between the superior frontal gyrus and the middle frontal gyrus....
    ,     lat. sulcus frontalis superior
  • Inferior frontal sulcus
    Inferior frontal sulcus

    The inferior frontal sulcus is a Sulcus between the middle frontal gyrus and the inferior frontal gyrus....
    ,     lat. sulcus frontalis inferior
Superior temporal sulcus, lat. sulcus temporalis superior

Inferior temporal sulcus, lat. sulcus temporalis inferior

Parieto-occipital sulcus, lat. sulcus parietoocipitalis

Intraparietal sulcus, lat. sulcus intraparietalis

Collateral sulcus, lat. sulcus collateralis

Calcarine sulcus, lat. sulcus calcarinus

Macaque

A macaque
Macaque

The macaques constitute a genus of Old World monkeys of the subfamily Cercopithecinae. Aside from humans , the macaques are the most widespread primate genus, ranging from northern Africa to Japan....
 has a more simple sulcal pattern. In a monograph Bonin and Bailey list the following as the primary sulci:
  • Calcarine fissure
    Calcarine fissure

    The calcarine fissure is an anatomical landmark located at the very caudal end of the medial surface of the brain....
     (ca)
  • Central sulcus
    Central sulcus

    The central Sulcus is a fold in the cerebral cortex of brains in vertebrates. Also called the central fissure, it was originally called the fissure of Rolando or the Rolandic fissure, after Luigi Rolando....
     (ce)
  • Sulcus cinguli
    Cingulate sulcus

    The cingulate sulcus is a sulcus on the medial wall of the cerebral cortex....
     (ci)
  • Hippocampal fissure (h)
  • Sulcus intraparitalis (ip)
  • Lateral fissure (or Sylvian fissure) (la)
  • Sulcus olfactorius (olf)
  • Medial parieto-occipital fissure (pom)
  • fissura rhinalis (rh)
  • Sulcus temporalis superior (ts) - this sulcus runs parallel to the lateral fissure and extends to the temporal pole and often superficially merges with it.


See also

  • Sulcus (anatomy)
    Sulcus (anatomy)

    A sulcus is a depression or fissure in the surface of an organ, especially the brain....


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