occipital lobe

Examples of occipital lobe in the following topics:

• Cerebral Lobes

  • The cortex is divided into four main lobes: frontal, parietal, occipital, temporal.
  • The parietal lobe is a part of the brain positioned above (superior to) the occipital lobe and behind (posterior to) the frontal lobe.
  • The two occipital lobes are the smallest of the four paired lobes in the human cerebral cortex.
  • Located in the rearmost portion of the skull, the occipital lobes are part of the forebrain.
  • At the front edge of the occipital there are several lateral occipital gyri separated by lateral occipital sulci.

• Foramina

  • The skull bones that contain foramina include the frontal, ethmoid, sphenoid, maxilla, palatine, temporal, and occipital lobes.
  • Foramen magnum: Located in the occipital bone, it allows the passage of the spinal and vertebral arteries and the spinal cord to pass from the skull into the vertebral column.

• Overview of the Cerebrum

  • Each hemisphere of the mammalian cerebral cortex can be broken down into four functionally and spatially defined lobes: frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital.
  • The temporal lobe is located at the base of the brain by the ears.
  • The occipital lobe is located at the back of the brain.
  • Motor portions of language are attributed to Broca's area within the frontal lobe.
  • Speech comprehension is attributed to Wernicke's area, at the temporal-parietal lobe junction.

• Association Areas

  • The parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes, all located in the posterior part of the cortex, organize sensory information into a coherent perceptual model of our environment centered on our body image.
  • The frontal lobe or prefrontal association complex is involved in planning actions and movement, as well as abstract thought.
  • The processes of language expression and reception occur in areas other than just the perisylvian structures such as the prefrontal lobe, basal ganglia, cerebellum, pons, caudate nucleus, and others.
  • For example, a patient with a lesion in the parietal-temporal-occipital association area has an agraphia, which means he is unable to write although he has no deficits in motor skills.

• Sensory Areas

  • The olfactory cortex is located in the uncus, found along the ventral surface of the temporal lobe.
  • The visual area is located on the calcarine sulcus deep within the inside folds of the occipital lobe.
  • The primary auditory cortex is located on the transverse gyri that lie on the back of the superior temporal convolution of the temporal lobes.

• Thalamus

  • For the visual system, for example, inputs from the retina are sent to the lateral geniculate nucleus of the thalamus, which in turn projects to the primary visual cortex in the occipital lobe.

• Meninges

  • Starts from the frontal crest of frontal bone and the cristia galli running to the internal occipital protuberance.
  • Tentorium cerebelli, the second largest, crescent-shaped; separates the occipital lobes from cerebellum.

• The Brain

  • Anatomists conventionally divide each hemisphere into four lobes: the frontal (control of specialized motor control, learning, planning, and speech), parietal (control of somatic sensory functions), occipital (control of vision), and temporal lobes (control of hearing and some speech).
  • The division into lobes does not actually arise from the structure of the cortex itself.
  • The borders between lobes are placed beneath the sutures that link the skull bones together.
  • Found deep in the temporal lobe, the seahorse-shaped hippocampus is responsible for memory.
  • Demonstration of brain regions, including the four lobes and internal structures.

• Cranial Bones

  • The neurocranium is comprised of eight bones: occipital, two temporal bones, two parietal bones, sphenoid, ethmoid, and the frontal bone.
  • The occipital bone forms the base of the skull at the rear of the cranium.
  • The temporal bones are situated at the base and sides of the skull, lateral to the temporal lobes of the brain.
  • The occipitomastoid suture separates the occipital bone and mastoid portion of temporal bone.
  • The greater wings form the floor of the middle cranial fossa that houses the frontal lobes and pituitary gland, and also the posterior wall of the orbit.

• Lobes, Fissures, and Lobules

  • The lungs are located on either side of the heart and are separated by fissures into lobes, three in the right and two lobes in the left.
  • The right lung is divided into three lobes.
  • The upper lobe is the largest lobe of the right lung.
  • The middle lobe is the smallest lobe of the right lung, located between the horizontal and oblique fissures.
  • The lower lobe is the bottom lobe of the right lung.