Korbinian Brodmann (17 November 1868 – 22 August 1918) was a German

neurologist Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal c ...

who became famous for mapping 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% consisting o ...

and defining 52 distinct regions, known as Brodmann areas, based on their cytoarchitectonic (

histological Histology, also known as microscopic anatomy or microanatomy, is the branch of biology which studies the microscopic anatomy of biological tissues. Histology is the microscopic counterpart to gross anatomy, which looks at larger structures vis ...

) characteristics.

Life and career

Brodmann was born in Liggersdorf, Province of Hohenzollern. He studied

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and ...

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

, and

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

, where he received his medical diploma in 1895. Subsequently he studied at the Medical School in the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; french: links=no, Université de Lausanne) in Lausanne, Switzerland was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second oldest in Switzer ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, and then worked in the University Clinic in Munich. He received a

doctor of medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...

degree from the

University of Leipzig Leipzig University (german: Universität Leipzig), in Leipzig in Saxony, Germany, is one of the world's oldest universities and the second-oldest university (by consecutive years of existence) in Germany. The university was founded on 2 December ...

in 1898, with a thesis on chronic

ependymal The ependyma is the thin neuroepithelial ( simple columnar ciliated epithelium) lining of the ventricular system of the brain and the central canal of the spinal cord. The ependyma is one of the four types of neuroglia in the central nervous syst ...

sclerosis. From 1900 to 1901, Brodmann also worked in the Psychiatric Clinic at the

University of Jena The University of Jena, officially the Friedrich Schiller University Jena (german: Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, abbreviated FSU, shortened form ''Uni Jena''), is a public research university located in Jena, Thuringia, Germany. The ...

, with Ludwig Binswanger, and in the Municipal Mental Asylum in

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...

. There, he met

Alois Alzheimer Alois Alzheimer ( , , ; 14 June 1864 – 19 December 1915) was a German psychiatrist and neuropathologist and a colleague of Emil Kraepelin. Alzheimer is credited with identifying the first published case of "presenile dementia", which Kraep ...

, who was influential in his decision to pursue

basic BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of general-purpose, high-level programming languages designed for ease of use. The original version was created by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz at Dartmouth College ...

neuroscience research. Following this, Brodmann started to work in 1901 with Cécile and Oskar Vogt at the private institute Neurobiologische Zentralstation in Berlin, and in 1902 in the Neurobiological Laboratory of the

University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...

. In 1915 he joined the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Institut für Hirnforschung, now known as the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research. In 1909, Brodmann published his original research on cortical cytoarchitectonics in the monograph '' Vergleichende Lokalisationslehre der Großhirnrinde'' (''Localisation in the cerebral cortex''). Famously, this book contained the first map of the

based on regional variations in structure. These regions would later become known as Brodmann areas. After completing his work in Berlin, Brodmann joined the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-W� ...

. There, he was

habilitated Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including a ...

and made a full professor in 1913. From 1910 to 1916, he served as physician and chairman of the Anatomical Laboratory at the University Psychiatric Clinic. Brodmann moved to

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in 1916 to work in the Nietleben Municipal Hospital. Finally, in 1918, he accepted an invitation from the

University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich or LMU; german: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München) is a public research university in Munich, Germany. It is Germany's sixth-oldest university in continuous operatio ...

to direct the group of histology at Psychiatric Research Center. Brodmann died in Munich rather suddenly of a generalized septic infection following

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

, at just under 50 years of age on 22 August 1918.

Brodmann areas

The cortical areas that Brodmann described and located are now usually referred to as Brodmann areas. There are a total of 52 areas grouped into 11

areas. Brodmann used a variety of criteria to map the human brain, including attention to both gross anatomical features and cortical micro-structures. Brodmann postulated that areas with different structures performed different functions. Indeed, some of these areas were later associated to nervous functions, such as the following: * Brodmann area 41 and 42 in the

temporal lobe The temporal lobe is one of the four major lobes of the cerebral cortex in the brain of mammals. The temporal lobe is located beneath the lateral fissure on both cerebral hemispheres of the mammalian brain. The temporal lobe is involved i ...

, related to

hearing Hearing, or auditory perception, is the ability to perceive sounds through an organ, such as an ear, by detecting vibrations as periodic changes in the pressure of a surrounding medium. The academic field concerned with hearing is audit ...

Brodmann area 45 Brodmann area 45 (BA45), is part of the frontal cortex in the human brain. It is situated on the lateral surface, inferior to BA9 and adjacent to BA46. This area in humans occupies the triangular part of inferior frontal gyrus (H) and, surround ...

and 44 overlap with the

Broca's area Broca's area, or the Broca area (, also , ), is a region in the frontal lobe of the dominant hemisphere, usually the left, of the brain with functions linked to speech production. Language processing has been linked to Broca's area since Pier ...

for language in humans *

Brodmann area 1 01 or '01 may refer to: * The year 2001, or any year ending with 01 * The month of January * 1 (number) Music * 01'' (Richard Müller album), 2001 * ''01'' (Son of Dave album), 2000 * ''01'' (Urban Zakapa album), 2011 * ''O1'' (Hiroyuki Sawan ...

, 2, and 3 in the postcentral gyrus of the parietal lobe (the

somatosensory In physiology, the somatosensory system is the network of neural structures in the brain and body that produce the perception of touch (haptic perception), as well as temperature (thermoception), body position ( proprioception), and pain. It ...

region) * Brodmann area 4 in the precentral gyrus of the

frontal lobe The frontal lobe is the largest of the four major lobes of the brain in mammals, and is located at the front of each cerebral hemisphere (in front of the parietal lobe and the temporal lobe). It is parted from the parietal lobe by a groove be ...

(the primary motor area) * Brodmann area 17 and 18 in the occipital lobe (the primary

visual The visual system comprises the sensory organ (the eye) and parts of the central nervous system (the retina containing photoreceptor cells, the optic nerve, the optic tract and the visual cortex) which gives organisms the sense of sight ...

areas). His work to characterize brain cytoarchitecture was strongly influenced by Oskar Vogt, who postulated over 200 distinct areas in the brain.

References

External links

Korbinian Brodmann (1868-1918)
article by Professor Laurence Garey

(German language) * ttp://www.whonamedit.com/doctor.cfm/1264.html Korbinian BrodmannWhoNamedIt {{DEFAULTSORT:Brodmann, Korbinian 1868 births 1918 deaths People from Konstanz (district) German neurologists German neuroscientists History of neuroscience Deaths from sepsis People from the Province of Hohenzollern Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich faculty University of Würzburg alumni Humboldt University of Berlin alumni University of Freiburg alumni Leipzig University alumni University of Tübingen faculty Deaths from pneumonia in Germany