The sensory cortex can refer sometimes to the
primary somatosensory cortex
In neuroanatomy, the primary somatosensory cortex is located in the postcentral gyrus of the brain's parietal lobe, and is part of the somatosensory system. It was initially defined from surface stimulation studies of Wilder Penfield, and parallel ...
, or it can be used as a term for the primary and secondary
cortices of the different
sense
A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the surroundings through the detection of Stimulus (physiology), stimuli. Although, in some cultures, five human senses were traditio ...
s (two cortices each, on left and right
hemisphere
Hemisphere may refer to:
In geometry
* Hemisphere (geometry), a half of a sphere
As half of Earth or any spherical astronomical object
* A hemisphere of Earth
** Northern Hemisphere
** Southern Hemisphere
** Eastern Hemisphere
** Western Hemi ...
): the
visual cortex
The visual cortex of the brain is the area of the cerebral cortex that processes visual information. It is located in the occipital lobe. Sensory input originating from the eyes travels through the lateral geniculate nucleus in the thalam ...
on the
occipital lobes, the
auditory cortex
The auditory cortex is the part of the temporal lobe that processes auditory information in humans and many other vertebrates. It is a part of the auditory system, performing basic and higher functions in hearing, such as possible relations to ...
on the
temporal lobes, the
primary olfactory cortex on the
uncus of the
piriform region of the temporal lobes, the
gustatory cortex
The primary gustatory cortex (GC) is a brain structure responsible for the perception of taste. It consists of two substructures: the anterior insula on the insular lobe and the frontal operculum on the inferior frontal gyrus of the frontal lo ...
on the
insular lobe (also referred to as the insular cortex), and the primary somatosensory cortex on the anterior
parietal lobes. Just posterior to the primary somatosensory cortex lies the somatosensory association cortex or area, which integrates sensory information from the primary somatosensory cortex (temperature, pressure, etc.) to construct an understanding of the object being felt. Inferior to the frontal lobes are found the olfactory bulbs, which receive sensory input from the olfactory nerves and route those signals throughout the brain. Not all olfactory information is routed to the olfactory cortex: some neural fibers are routed to the supraorbital region of the frontal lobe, while others are routed directly to
limbic structures. The direct limbic connection makes the olfactory sense unique.
The brain cortical regions are related to the auditory, visual, olfactory, and somatosensory (touch,
proprioception
Proprioception ( ) is the sense of self-movement, force, and body position.
Proprioception is mediated by proprioceptors, a type of sensory receptor, located within muscles, tendons, and joints. Most animals possess multiple subtypes of propri ...
) sensations, which are located lateral to the
lateral fissure and posterior to the
central sulcus, that is, more toward the back of the brain. The cortical region related to gustatory sensation is located anterior to the central sulcus.
Note that the central sulcus (sometimes referred to as the central fissure) divides the
primary motor cortex
The primary motor cortex ( Brodmann area 4) is a brain region that in humans is located in the dorsal portion of the frontal lobe. It is the primary region of the motor system and works in association with other motor areas including premotor c ...
(on the
precentral gyrus of the posterior frontal lobe) from the primary somatosensory cortex (on the
postcentral gyrus
In neuroanatomy, the postcentral gyrus is a prominent gyrus in the lateral parietal lobe of the human brain. It is the location of the primary somatosensory cortex, the main sensory receptive area for the sense of touch. Like other sensory area ...
of the anterior parietal lobe).
The sensory cortex is involved in somatic sensation, visual stimuli, and movement planning.
See also
*
Primary sensory areas
References
Cerebral cortex
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