In biological morphology and

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having its ...

, a sulcus (pl. ''sulci'') is a furrow or fissure (

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

''fissura'',

plural The plural (sometimes list of glossing abbreviations, abbreviated pl., pl, or ), in many languages, is one of the values of the grammatical number, grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than the ...

''fissurae''). It may be a groove, natural division, deep furrow, elongated cleft, or tear in the surface of a limb or an organ, most notably on the surface of the

brain The brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It consists of nervous tissue and is typically located in the head ( cephalization), usually near organs for special ...

, but also in the lungs, certain

muscle Skeletal muscles (commonly referred to as muscles) are Organ (biology), organs of the vertebrate muscular system and typically are attached by tendons to bones of a skeleton. The muscle cells of skeletal muscles are much longer than in the other ...

s (including the

heart The heart is a muscular organ found in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon diox ...

), as well as in bones, and elsewhere. Many sulci are the product of a surface fold or junction, such as in the

gums The gums or gingiva (plural: ''gingivae'') consist of the mucosal tissue that lies over the mandible and maxilla inside the mouth. Gum health and disease can have an effect on general health. Structure The gums are part of the soft tissue l ...

, where they fold around the

neck The neck is the part of the body on many vertebrates that connects the head with the torso. The neck supports the weight of the head and protects the nerves that carry sensory and motor information from the brain down to the rest of the body. In ...

of the tooth. In

invertebrate zoology Invertebrate zoology is the subdiscipline of zoology that consists of the study of invertebrates, animals without a backbone (a structure which is found only in fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals). Invertebrates are a vast and very ...

, a sulcus is a fold, groove, or boundary, especially at the edges of

sclerite A sclerite ( Greek , ', meaning " hard") is a hardened body part. In various branches of biology the term is applied to various structures, but not as a rule to vertebrate anatomical features such as bones and teeth. Instead it refers most commonl ...

s or between segments. In

pollen Pollen is a powdery substance produced by seed plants. It consists of pollen grains (highly reduced microgametophytes), which produce male gametes (sperm cells). Pollen grains have a hard coat made of sporopollenin that protects the gametop ...

a grain that is grooved by a sulcus is termed sulcate.

Examples in anatomy

Liver

* Ligamentum teres hepatis fissure * Ligamentum venosum fissure * Portal fissure, found in the under-surface of the

liver The liver is a major organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it ...

* Transverse fissure of liver, found in the lower surface of the liver * Umbilical fissure, found in front of the

Lung

*Azygos fissure, of right lung * Horizontal fissure of right lung * Oblique fissure, of the right and left lungs

Skull

* Auricular fissure, found in the

temporal bone The temporal bones are situated at the sides and base of the skull, and lateral to the temporal lobes of the cerebral cortex. The temporal bones are overlaid by the sides of the head known as the temples, and house the structures of the ears ...

* Petrotympanic fissure * Pterygomaxillary fissure *

Sphenoidal fissure The superior orbital fissure is a foramen or cleft of the skull between the lesser and greater wings of the sphenoid bone. It gives passage to multiple structures, including the oculomotor nerve, trochlear nerve, ophthalmic nerve, abducens nerve, ...

, separates the wings and the body of the sphenoid bone *

Superior orbital fissure The superior orbital fissure is a foramen or cleft of the skull between the lesser and greater wings of the sphenoid bone. It gives passage to multiple structures, including the oculomotor nerve, trochlear nerve, ophthalmic nerve, abducens ...

Other types

anal fissure An anal fissure is a break or tear in the skin of the anal canal. Anal fissures may be noticed by bright red anal bleeding on toilet paper and undergarments, or sometimes in the toilet. If acute they are painful after defecation, but with chroni ...

, a break or tear in the skin of the anal canal * anterior interventricular sulcus * calcaneal sulcus *

coronal sulcus In male human anatomy, the glans penis, commonly referred to as the glans, is the bulbous structure at the distal end of the human penis that is the human male's most sensitive erogenous zone and their primary anatomical source of sexual plea ...

* femoral sulcus or intercondylar fossa of femur *

fissure (dentistry) Tooth decay, also known as cavities or caries, is the breakdown of teeth due to acids produced by bacteria. The cavities may be a number of different colors from yellow to black. Symptoms may include pain and difficulty with eating. Complicatio ...

, a break in the tooth enamel *

fissure of the nipple Fissure of the nipple, colloquially referred to as "jogger's nipple", is a condition that is the result of chafing of one or both nipples. This can occur in both men and women during physical exercise such as long-distance running where there is ...

, a condition that results from running, breastfeeding and other friction-causing exposures * fissured tongue, a condition characterized by deep grooves (fissures) in the tongue * gingival sulcus * gluteal sulcus * Henle's fissure, a fissure in the connective tissue between the muscle fibers of the

interlabial sulci The labia are part of the female genitalia; they are the major externally visible portions of the vulva. In humans, there are two pairs of labia: the ''labia majora'' (or the outer labia) are larger and thicker, while the ''labia minora'' are fol ...

intermammary sulcus The intermammary cleft or intermammary sulcus or sulcus intermammarius is a surface feature of males and females that marks the division of the two breasts with the sternum (breastbone) in the middle.Dr. Ted Eisenberg and Joyce K. Eisenberg, ''T ...

* intertubercular sulcus, the groove between the lesser and greater tubercules of the humerus (bone of the upper arm) * lacrimal sulcus (sulcus lacrimalis) *

malleolar sulcus Also known as the Malleolar groove. There are two malleolar sulci, medial and lateral. The medial malleolar sulcus is the posto-inferior groove just lateral to the medial malleolus on the distal part of the tibia. It is where the tendons of th ...

* palpebral fissure, separates the upper and lower eyelids * patellar sulcus or intercondylar fossa of femur * posterior interventricular sulcus * preauricular sulcus * radial sulcus ( musculospiral groove) * sagittal sulcus * separatoral sulcus (depression behind the brow ridges of some primates) * sigmoid sulcus * skin fissure, a linear-like cleavage of skin, sometimes defined as extending into the dermis *

sulcus arteriæ vertebralis ''Sulcus'' (plural ''sulci'') may refer to: * Gingival sulcus, the space between a tooth and surrounding tissue * Sulcus (morphology), a groove, crevice or furrow in medicine, botany, and zoology * Sulcus (neuroanatomy), a crevice on the surfa ...

* sulcus subtarsalis in the eyelid *

sulcus tubae auditivae The lateral half of the great wing of the sphenoid bone articulates, by means of a synchondrosis, with the petrous part of the temporal bone. Between these two bones on the under surface of the skull, is a furrow, the sulcus of auditory tubule'', ...

* tympanic sulcus * urethral sulcusLarkins, Christine E., and Martin J. Cohn.
Phallus development in the turtle Trachemys scripta
" Sexual Development 9.1 (2015): 34-42. *

Ventral median fissure The anterior median fissure (ventral or ventromedian fissure) contains a fold of pia mater, and extends along the entire length of the medulla oblongata: It ends at the lower border of the pons in a small triangular expansion, termed the foramen ...

, of the spinal cord

In neuroanatomy

Brain

*''

Broca's fissure Broca's fissure is a medical and scientific term for a sulcus occurring in the area of the brain known as Broca's area. Broca's area contains the motor speech area and controls movements of tongue, lips and vocal cords. Broca's fissure produces ...

'': found in the third left frontal fold of the brain. *'' Burdach's fissure'': connects the brain's insula and the inner surface of the operculum. *'' Calcarine sulcus'' or ''Calcerine fissure'': extends from the occipital of the

cerebrum The cerebrum, telencephalon or endbrain is the largest part of the brain containing the cerebral cortex (of the two cerebral hemispheres), as well as several subcortical structures, including the hippocampus, basal ganglia, and olfactory bulb. ...

to the occipital fissure. *'' Callosomarginal fissure'': found in the medial surface of the cerebrum. *''

Central sulcus In neuroanatomy, the central sulcus (also central fissure, fissure of Rolando, or Rolandic fissure, after Luigi Rolando) is a sulcus, or groove, in the cerebral cortex in the brain The brain is an organ that serves as the center of the ...

or ''Rolando's fissure'': separates the brain's frontal and

parietal lobe The parietal lobe is one of the four major lobes of the cerebral cortex in the brain of mammals. The parietal lobe is positioned above the temporal lobe and behind the frontal lobe and central sulcus. The parietal lobe integrates sensory informa ...

s. *'' Clevenger's fissure'': found in the inferior temporal lobe of the brain *'' Collateral fissure'': found in the inferior surface of the cerebrum. *''

Fissure of Bichat A fissure is a long, narrow crack opening along the surface of Earth. The term is derived from the Latin word , which means 'cleft' or 'crack'. Fissures emerge in Earth's crust, on ice sheets and glaciers, and on volcanoes. Ground fissure A ...

'': found below 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 ...

in the

cerebellum The cerebellum (Latin for "little brain") is a major feature of the hindbrain of all vertebrates. Although usually smaller than the cerebrum, in some animals such as the mormyrid fishes it may be as large as or even larger. In humans, the cere ...

of the

. *'' Lateral sulcus'' or ''Fissure of Sylvius'': separates the frontal and parietal lobes of the brain from the temporal lobe. *'' Hippocampal sulcus'': a sulcus that extends from the brain's corpus callosum to the tip of the temporal lobe. *'' Horizontal fissure or Transverse fissure'': found between the cerebrum and the cerebellum. Note that a "transverse fissure" can also be found in the

and lungs. *'' Longitudinal fissure'' or ''Medial longitudinal fissure'': which divides the cerebrum into the two hemispheres. *'' Occipitoparietal fissure'': found between the occipital and parietal lobes of the brain. *'' Wernicke's fissure'': separates the brain's temporal and parietal lobes from the occipital lobe. *'' Zygal fissure'': found in the cerebrum. In the

a sulcus is a groove formed in the stage of gyrification by the folding of the cortex. There are many sulci and gyri formed. A larger than usual sulcus may instead be called a fissure such as the longitudinal fissure that separates the two

hemispheres Hemisphere refers to: * A half of a sphere As half of the Earth * A hemisphere of Earth ** Northern Hemisphere ** Southern Hemisphere ** Eastern Hemisphere ** Western Hemisphere ** Land and water hemispheres * A half of the (geocentric) celestia ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sulcus (Anatomy) Anatomy