![MRI cingulate cortex](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f/MRI_cingulate_cortex.png)
The cingulate cortex is a part of the
brain
A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a ve ...
situated in the medial aspect of the
cerebral cortex
The cerebral cortex, also known as the cerebral mantle, is the outer layer of neural tissue of the cerebrum of the brain in humans and other mammals. The cerebral cortex mostly consists of the six-layered neocortex, with just 10% consistin ...
. The cingulate cortex includes the entire cingulate gyrus, which lies immediately above the
corpus callosum
The corpus callosum (Latin for "tough body"), also callosal commissure, is a wide, thick nerve tract, consisting of a flat bundle of commissural fibers, beneath the cerebral cortex in the brain. The corpus callosum is only found in placental m ...
, and the continuation of this in the
cingulate sulcus
The cingulate sulcus is a sulcus (brain fold) on the cingulate cortex in the medial wall of the cerebral cortex. The frontal and parietal lobes are separated from the cingulate gyrus by the cingulate sulcus. It terminates as the marginal sulcus o ...
. The cingulate cortex is usually considered part of the
limbic lobe
The limbic lobe is an arc-shaped region of cortex on the medial surface of each cerebral hemisphere of the mammalian brain, consisting of parts of the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. The term is ambiguous, with some authors including the p ...
.
It receives inputs from the
thalamus
The thalamus (from Greek θάλαμος, "chamber") is a large mass of gray matter located in the dorsal part of the diencephalon (a division of the forebrain). Nerve fibers project out of the thalamus to the cerebral cortex in all directions, ...
and the
neocortex, and projects to the
entorhinal cortex
The entorhinal cortex (EC) is an area of the brain's allocortex, located in the medial temporal lobe, whose functions include being a widespread network hub for memory, navigation, and the perception of time.Integrating time from experience in the ...
via the
cingulum. It is an integral part of the
limbic system, which is involved with emotion formation and processing, learning, and memory. The combination of these three functions makes the cingulate gyrus highly influential in linking motivational outcomes to behavior (e.g. a certain action induced a positive emotional response, which results in learning). This role makes the cingulate cortex highly important in disorders such as
depression and
schizophrenia
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wit ...
.
It also plays a role in
executive function
In cognitive science and neuropsychology, executive functions (collectively referred to as executive function and cognitive control) are a set of cognitive processes that are necessary for the cognitive control of behavior: selecting and succ ...
and respiratory control.
Etymology
The term ''cingulate'' is derived from the Latin ''cingulātus'' (meaning "girdled").
Structure
Based on
cerebral cytoarchitectonics it has been divided into the
Brodmann area
A Brodmann area is a region of the cerebral cortex, in the human or other primate brain, defined by its cytoarchitecture, or histological structure and organization of cells.
History
Brodmann areas were originally defined and numbered by th ...
s
23,
24,
26,
29,
30,
31,
32 and
33. The areas
26,
29 and
30 are usually referred to as the retrosplenial areas.
Anterior cingulate cortex
This corresponds to areas 24, 32 and 33 of Brodmann and LA of
Constantin von Economo
Constantin Freiherr von Economo ( gr, Κωνσταντίνος Οικονόμου; 21 August 1876 – 21 October 1931) was an Austrian psychiatrist and neurologist of Greek descent, born in modern-day Romania (then Ottoman Empire). He is mos ...
and Bailey and von Bonin.
It is continued anteriorly by the subgenual area (
Brodmann area 25
Brodmann area 25 (BA25) is the subgenual area, area subgenualis or subgenual cingulatea area in the cerebral cortex of the brain and delineated based on its cytoarchitectonic characteristics.
It is the 25th " Brodmann area" defined by Korbinian ...
), located below the
genu of the corpus callosum
The corpus callosum (Latin for "tough body"), also callosal commissure, is a wide, thick nerve tract, consisting of a flat bundle of commissural fibers, beneath the cerebral cortex in the brain. The corpus callosum is only found in placental ma ...
).
It is cytoarchitectonically
agranular. It has a
gyral and a
sulcal part.
Anterior cingulate cortex
In the human brain
The human brain is the central organ (anatomy), organ of the human nervous system, and with the spinal cord makes up the central nervous system. The brain consists of the cerebrum, the brainstem and the cerebellum. It c ...
can further be divided in the perigenual anterior cingulate cortex (near the genu) and midcingulate cortex. The anterior cingulate cortex receives primarily its afferent axons from the
intralaminar and
midline
In typography, the mean line is the imaginary line at the top of the x-height.
upright 2.0, alt=A diagram showing the line terms used in typography
Round glyphs will tend to break ( overshoot) the mean line slightly in many typefaces
A typ ...
thalamic nuclei (see
thalamus
The thalamus (from Greek θάλαμος, "chamber") is a large mass of gray matter located in the dorsal part of the diencephalon (a division of the forebrain). Nerve fibers project out of the thalamus to the cerebral cortex in all directions, ...
).
The nucleus anterior receives mamillo-thalamic afferences. The mamillary neurons receive axons from the
subiculum
The subiculum (Latin for "support") is the most inferior component of the hippocampal formation. It lies between the entorhinal cortex and the CA1 subfield of the hippocampus proper.
The subicular complex comprises a set of related structures ...
.
The whole forms a
neural circuit in the limbic system known as the
Papez circuit.
The anterior cingulate cortex sends axons to the anterior nucleus and through the
cingulum to other Broca's limbic areas. The ACC is involved in error and conflict detection processes.
Posterior cingulate cortex
This corresponds to areas 23 and 31 of Brodmann LP of von Economo and Bailey and von Bonin. Its cellular structure is granular. It is followed posteriorly by the retrosplenial cortex (area 29).
Dorsally is the granular area 31. The posterior cingulate cortex receives a great part of its afferent axons from the superficial nucleus (or nucleus superior- falsely LD-) of the thalamus (see
thalamus
The thalamus (from Greek θάλαμος, "chamber") is a large mass of gray matter located in the dorsal part of the diencephalon (a division of the forebrain). Nerve fibers project out of the thalamus to the cerebral cortex in all directions, ...
), which itself receives axons from the subiculum. To some extent it thus duplicates Papez' circuit. It receives also direct afferents from the subiculum of the hippocampus. Posterior cingulate cortex hypometabolism (with 18F-FDG PET) has been defined in Alzheimer's disease.
Inputs of the anterior cingulate gyrus
A retrograde tracing experiment on macaque monkeys revealed that the
ventral anterior nucleus
The ventral anterior nucleus (VA) is a nucleus of the thalamus. It acts with the anterior part of the ventral lateral nucleus to modify signals from the basal ganglia.
Inputs and outputs
The ventral anterior nucleus receives neuronal inputs from t ...
(VA) and the
ventral lateral nucleus
The ventral lateral nucleus (VL) is a nucleus in the ventral nuclear group of the thalamus.
Inputs and outputs
It receives neuronal inputs from the basal ganglia which includes the substantia nigra and the globus pallidus (via the thalamic fasc ...
(VL) of the thalamus are connected with motor areas of the cingulate sulcus.
The retrosplenial region (Brodmann's area 26, 29 and 30) of cingulate gyrus can be divided into three parts: ''i.e.'', retrosplenial granular cortex A, retrosplenial granular cortex B and retrosplenial dysgranular cortex. The hippocampal formation sends dense projections to retrosplenial granular cortex A and B and fewer projections to the retrosplenial dysgranular cortex. The postsubiculum sends projections to retrosplenial granular cortex A and B and to the retrosplenial dysgranular cortex. The dorsal subiculum sends projections to retrosplenial granular cortex B, while ventral subiculum sends projections to retrosplenial granular cortex A. Entorhinal cortex – caudal parts – sends projections to the retrosplenial dysgranular cortex.
Outputs of the anterior cingulate gyrus
The rostral cingulate gyrus (Brodmanns's area 32) projects to the rostral superior temporal gyrus, midorbitofrontal cortex and lateral prefrontal cortex.
The ventral anterior cingulate (Brodmann's area 24) sends projections to the anterior insular cortex, premotor cortex (Brodmann's area 6), Brodmann's area 8, the perirhinal area, the orbitofrontal cortex (Brodmann's area 12), the laterobasal nucleus of amygdala, and the rostral part of the inferior parietal lobule.
Injecting
wheat germ agglutinin and
horseradish peroxidase conjugate into the anterior cingulate gyrus of cats, revealed that the anterior cingulate gyrus has reciprocal connections with the rostral part of the thalamic posterior lateral nucleus and rostral end of the pulvinar.
The postsubiculum receives projections from the retrospleinal dysgranular cortex and the retrosplenial granular cortex A and B. The parasubiculum receives projections from the retrosplenial dysgranular cortex and retrosplenial granular cortex A. Caudal and lateral parts of the entorhinal cortex get projections from the retrosplenial dysgranular cortex, while the caudal medial entorhinal cortex receives projections from the retrosplenial granular cortex A. The retrosplenial dysgranular cortex sends projections to the perirhinal cortex. The retrospleinal granular cortex A sends projection to the rostral presubiculum.
Outputs of the posterior cingulate gyrus
The posterior cingulate cortex (Brodmann's area 23) sends projections to dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (Brodmann's area 9), anterior prefrontal cortex (Brodmann's area 10), orbitofrontal cortex (Brodmanns’ area 11), the parahippocampal gyrus, posterior part of the inferior parietal lobule, the presubiculum, the superior temporal sulcus and the retrosplenial region.
The retrosplenial cortex and caudal part of the cingulate cortex are connected with rostral prefrontal cortex via cingulate fascicule in macaque monkeys
Ventral posterior cingulate cortex was found to be reciprocally connected with the caudal part of the posterior parietal lobe in rhesus monkeys.
Also the medial posterior parietal cortex is connected with posterior ventral bank of the cingulate sulcus.
Other connections
The anterior cingulate is connected to the posterior cingulate at least in rabbits. Posterior cingulate gyrus is connected with retrosplenial cortex and this connection is part of the dorsal splenium of the corpus callosum. The anterior and posterior cingulate gyrus and retrosplenial cortex send projections to subiculum and presubiculum.
Clinical significance in schizophrenia
Using a three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging procedure to measure the volume of the rostral anterior cingulate gyrus (perigenual cingulate gyrus), Takahashi et al. (2003) found that the rostral anterior cingulate gyrus is larger in control (healthy) females than males, but this sex difference was not found in people with schizophrenia. People with schizophrenia also had a smaller volume of perigenual cingulate gyrus than control subjects.
Haznedar et al. (2004) studied metabolic rate of glucose in anterior and posterior cingulate gyrus in people with schizophrenia,
schizotypal personality disorder
Schizotypal personality disorder (STPD or SPD), also known as schizotypal disorder, is a mental and behavioral disorder. DSM classification describes the disorder specifically as a personality disorder characterized by thought disorder, paran ...
(SPD) and compared them with a control group. The metabolic rate of glucose was found to be lower in the left anterior cingulate gyrus and the right posterior cingulate gyrus in people with schizophrenia relative to controls. Although people with SPD were expected to show a glucose metabolic rate somewhere between the individual with schizophrenia and controls, they actually had higher metabolic glucose rate in the left posterior cingulate gyrus. The volume of the left anterior cingulate gyrus was reduced in people with schizophrenia as compared with controls, but there was not any difference between people with SPD and people with schizophrenia. From these results it appears that the schizophrenia and SPD are two different disorders.
A study of the volume of the gray and white matter in the anterior cingulate gyrus in people with schizophrenia and their healthy first and second degree relatives revealed no significant difference in the volume of the white matter in the people with schizophrenia and their healthy relatives. Nonetheless a significant difference in the volume of gray matter was detected, people with schizophrenia had smaller volume of gray matter than their second degree relatives, but not relative to their first degree relatives. Both the person with schizophrenia and their first degree healthy relatives have smaller gray matter volume than the second degree healthy relatives. It appears that genes are responsible for the decreased volume of gray matter in people with schizophrenia.
Fujiwara et al. (2007) did an experiment in which they correlated the size of anterior cingulate gyrus in people with schizophrenia with their functioning on social cognition, psychopathology and emotions with control group. The smaller the size of anterior cingulate gyrus, the lower was the level of social functioning and the higher was the psychopathology in the people with schizophrenia. The anterior cingulate gyrus was found to be bilaterally smaller in people with schizophrenia as compared with control group. No difference in IQ tests and basic visuoperceptual ability with facial stimuli was found between people with schizophrenia and the control.
Summary
People with schizophrenia have differences in the anterior cingulate gyrus when compared with controls. The anterior cingulate gyrus was found to be smaller in people with schizophrenia.
The volume of the gray matter in the anterior cingulate gyrus was found to be lower in people with schizophrenia.
Healthy females have larger rostral anterior cingulate gyrus than males, this sex difference in size is absent in people with schizophrenia.
The metabolic rate of glucose was lower in the left anterior cingulate gyrus and in the right posterior cingulate gyrus.
In addition to changes in the cingulate cortex more brain structures show changes in people with schizophrenia as compared to controls. The hippocampus in people with schizophrenia was found to be smaller in size when compared with controls of the same age group,
and, similarly, the caudate and putamen were found to be smaller in volume in a longitudinal study of people with schizophrenia.
While the volume of gray matter is smaller, the size of the lateral and third ventricles is larger in people with schizophrenia.
History
''
Cingulum'' means "belt" in Latin. The name was likely chosen because this cortex, in great part, surrounds the
corpus callosum
The corpus callosum (Latin for "tough body"), also callosal commissure, is a wide, thick nerve tract, consisting of a flat bundle of commissural fibers, beneath the cerebral cortex in the brain. The corpus callosum is only found in placental m ...
.
The cingulate cortex is a part of the ''"grand lobe limbique"'' of
Broca (1878) that consisted of a superior cingulate part (supracallosa) and an inferior hippocampic part (infracallosal). The
limbic lobe
The limbic lobe is an arc-shaped region of cortex on the medial surface of each cerebral hemisphere of the mammalian brain, consisting of parts of the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. The term is ambiguous, with some authors including the p ...
was separated from the remainder of the cortex by Broca for two reasons: first because it is not convoluted, and second because the gyri are directed parasagittally (contrary to the transverse
gyrification
Gyrification is the process of forming the characteristic folds of the cerebral cortex.
The peak of such a fold is called a ''gyrus'' (pl. ''gyri''), and its trough is called a '' sulcus'' (pl. ''sulci''). The neurons of the cerebral cortex re ...
). Since the parasagittal gyrification is observed in non-primate species, the limbic lobe was thus declared to be "bestial". As with other parts of the cortex, there have been and continue to be discrepancies concerning boundaries and naming.
Brodmann (1909) further distinguished Areas 24 (anterior cingulate) and 23 (posterior) based on granularity. Most recently, it was included as a part of the
limbic lobe
The limbic lobe is an arc-shaped region of cortex on the medial surface of each cerebral hemisphere of the mammalian brain, consisting of parts of the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes. The term is ambiguous, with some authors including the p ...
in the Terminologia Anatomica (1998) following von Economo's (1925) system.
[''Economo, C., Koskinas, G.N. (1925).'' Die Cytoarchitektonik der Hirnrinde des erwachsenen Menschen. Wien: Springer Verlag.]
Additional images
File:Slide2ZEN.JPG, Medial surface of cerebral hemisphere. Medial view. Deep dissection.
File:Slide3ZEN.JPG, Medial surface of cerebral hemisphere. Medial view. Deep dissection.
File:Slide4ZE.JPG, Medial surface of cerebral hemisphere. Medial view. Deep dissection.
File:Cingulate cortex.gif, 3D view of the cingulate gyrus (green) and paracingulate gyrus (yellow) in an average human brain
References
External links
Four Regions of Cingulate Cortex and Disease Vulnerability Brent A. Vogt.
*
Mapping 'self' and 'other' in the brainA nice picture of the cingulate cortex and its parts
{{Authority control
Cerebral cortex
Gyri