Cerebral Cortex Anatomy: 9 Functions of the Cerebral Cortex

The cerebral cortex is a thin outer layer of neurons that covers the two cerebral hemispheres of the brain. The cerebral cortex is overwhelmingly composed of gray matter, which contains dense quantities of neuronal cell bodies. This heavy concentration of neurons makes the cerebral cortex one of the most active parts of the central nervous system. The cerebral cortex contains minimal white matter, which is more abundant in deeper parts of the brain and along the spinal cord.

In the human brain, the cerebral cortex ranges from two to four millimeters thick, and it contains between 14 billion and 16 billion neurons. These neurons form cortical columns, minicolumns, and layers in different cortical areas with specific functions. Ninety percent of the cerebral cortex exists in a six-layered neocortex, and the remaining ten percent exists in a thinner allocortex.

In large mammalian brains, the cerebral cortex folds over itself, allowing for more surface area within the cranium. Each fold, or gyrus, forms a groove, or sulcus. Large gyri and sulci break the brain into distinct lobes, including the occipital lobe, the parietal lobe, the temporal lobe, and the frontal lobe. The longitudinal central sulcus divides the brain into a left hemisphere and a right hemisphere, which are connected beneath the cortex by the corpus callosum.

The cerebral cortex covers the full surface area of the cerebrum. It forms from the pallium, a structure made from layers of fluid-filled ventricles. Together, the dorsal pallium, medial pallium, ventral pallium, and lateral pallium make up the neocortex and much of the allocortex.

During prenatal development, the cerebral cortex arise out of the anterior part of the neural tube, also known as the forebrain region. Over the course of a lifetime, it continually rearranges itself through the formation of new synapses that affect cognition and memory.

The human cerebral cortex is divided into smaller subcortical association areas that control specific brain functions including cognition, decision-making, and fine motor skills.

1. 1. Motor cortices: The primary motor cortex, premotor cortex, and supplementary motor areas both select and control voluntary movements.
2. 2. Posterior parietal cortex: This cortex helps organisms navigate in the space around them.
3. 3. Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex: This cortex executes thoughts and internal rules that help prioritize which voluntary movements to enact.
4. 4. Visual cortex: The visual cortex processes visual stimuli. It does so in conjunction with the thalamus, a separate section of the brain found in the dorsal part of the diencephalon.
5. 5. Primary auditory cortex: The auditory cortex processes auditory stimuli.
6. 6. Olfactory cortex: This cortex processes smells and pheromones. It is located in the allocortex alongside the hippocampus.
7. 7. Primary somatosensory cortex: This sensory cortex interacts with stimuli from sensory areas throughout the body and is particularly attuned to touch and temperature change. These stimuli are transmitted along the spinal cord and pass through other regions of the brain, starting with the brainstem, on their way to the somatosensory cortex.
8. 8. Association areas: Areas of the cerebral cortex in the frontal lobe govern most perceptual experiences and help humans produce abstract thoughts. These areas of conceptual association are sometimes informally called the association cortex.
9. 9. Language areas: Neuroscience indicates that language is regulated by many areas of the cerebral cortex, particularly around the lateral sulcus. These include Broca's area of the left inferior frontal gyrus and Wernicke's area. Other parts of the brain also assist in linguistic function, including the cerebellum, the frontal lobe, basal ganglia, and the pons section of the brainstem.

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