AnatomyNeuroanatomyCerebrumBrodmann areas

AnatomyNeuroanatomyCerebrumBrodmann areas

Brodmann areas

Author: Alice Ferng, B.S., MD, PhD • Reviewer: Dimitrios Mytilinaios, MD, PhD
Last reviewed: October 30, 2023
Reading time: 12 minutes

Originally defined and numbered into 52 regions by the German anatomist Korbinian Brodmann in the early 1900’s, the Brodmann areas of the cerebral cortex are defined by its cytoarchitecture (histological structure and cellular organization).

It is important to remember that the same Brodmann area numbers in humans and primates often do not translate to other species. In addition, these Brodmann areas have been widely redefined, discussed, debated, and refined exhaustively based on cytoarchitecture, cortical functions, and brain plasticity.

Key facts about Brodmann areas
Areas 1, 2, 3	Primary somatosensory cortex (postcentral gyrus)
Area 4	Primary motor cortex (precentral gyrus)
Area 5	Somatosensory association cortex
Area 6	Premotor and supplementary motor cortex
Area 9	Dorsolateral/anterior prefrontal cortex (motor planning, and organization)
Area 10	Anterior prefrontal cortex (memory retrieval)
Area 17	Primary visual cortex
Area 22	Primary auditory cortex
Area 37	Occipitotemporal (fusiform) gyrus
Areas 22, 39, 40	Wernicke's area (language comprehension)
Areas 44, 45	Broca's area (motor speech programming)

This article will discuss the Brodmann areas and their function.

Contents

Anatomical basis
Important Brodmann areas
1. Areas 1,2,3
2. Area 4
3. Area 5
4. Area 6
5. Area 9
6. Area 10
7. Area 17
8. Area 22
9. Area 37
10. Areas 22, 39, 40
11. Areas 44,45
All Brodmann areas
Lesions of Brodmann areas
1. Areas 1,2,3
2. Area 4
3. Area 5
4. Area 6
5. Area 9
6. Area 10
7. Area 17
8. Area 22
9. Areas 22, 39, 40
10. Areas 44, 45
Sources

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Anatomical basis

The Brodmann areas were initially based on the cytoarchitectural organization of neurons in the cerebral cortex.

Specifically, it was observed that they were organized in distinct groups once the cells were stained using the Nissl method (which consists of basic dyes, notably staining the rough endoplasmic reticulum—also known as Nissl substance—dark blue). Many of these areas of distinct neuronal organization have since been correlated to various cortical functions.

Since there are 52 distinct Brodmann regions, only a few of the major regions will be further elaborated in this article. However, a list of all areas defined can be found below for reference.

Neuroanatomy is big topic, so it's important to start with a solid foundation. Have you already mastered the basics? Our free diagrams and quizzes on the parts of the brain are a great place to get started.

Important Brodmann areas

Areas 1,2,3

Primary somatosensory cortex (or Postcentral gyrus) – this is numbered rostral to caudal as 3,1,2. This region is associated with several senses, such as the ones for:

localization of touch, temperature, vibration, pain
sensory perception (two-point discrimination, proprioception, etc.) especially the legs, trunk, arms, hands, face and lips
skilled and coordinated orofacial movement (i.e. whistling)
motor learning

Area 4

This are is also known as the primary motor cortex (or Precentral gyrus) (may possibly include part of Area 6). It is responsible for executing motor movements, which includes contralateral finger/hand/wrist or orofacial movements, learned motor sequences, breathing control, and voluntary blinking.

Precentral gyrus (cross section)

Area 5

Somatosensory association cortex – Brodmann area 5 is part of the parietal cortex. Associated functions include:

stereopsis
line bisection judgments
processing chaotic patterns
using spatial imagery in deductive reasoning
motor execution
bimanual manipulation
working memory
language processing
visuomotor attention
pain perception
tactile localization
saccadic eye movement

Area 6

Premotor and Supplementary Motor Cortex – this region is critical for the sensory guidance of movement and control of proximal and trunk muscles, and contributes to the planning of complex and coordinated motor movements. This area plays a large role in motor, language, and memory functions, including:

motor sequencing/planning
laughter/smiling
interlimb coordination
movement learning and initiation
motor imagery
speech motor programming
language processing and switching
speech perception
object naming
lip-reading
word retrieval
lexical decision on words and pseudowords
syntactical processing
working memory
mnemonic rehearsal
episodic long-term memory
topographic memory
visuospatial and visuomotor attention
attention to human voices

Note: The “Motor Association Cortex” includes areas 6, 8, 44, and 45. This association cortex is involved in movement throughout the body, including motor speech movements.

Area 9

Dorsolateral/anterior prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) – This region is the highest cortical area responsible for motor planning, organization, and regulation, and sustaining attention and working memory. The DLPFC plays an important role in:

integrating sensory and mnemonic information
regulation of intellectual function and action
the act of deception and lying

In sum, all complex mental activities require crosstalk between cortical and subcortical circuits that are connected to the DLPFC.

Area 10

Anterior prefrontal cortex – involved in strategic processes of memory retrieval and executive functions, such as

reasoning
task flexibility
problem solving
planning
execution
working memory
processing emotional stimuli
inferential reasoning
decision making
calculation of numerical processes

There is a significant role of Areas 9 and 10 in memory encoding and retrieval, and area 10 is thought to control and manipulate event and time-based prospective memory (metamemory), and allow “intentional forgetting.”

Area 10 is also involved in attending to sensory stimulation and use of language (generating sentences, word-stem completion, verbal fluency, syntactic processing, and metaphor comprehension).

Area 17

Primary visual cortex (V1) – the visual cortex is located in the occipital lobe in the back of the brain, and contains a well-defined map of the spatial information required for vision.

Area 22

Primary auditory cortex / Superior Temporal Gyrus (part of Wernicke’s area) – this region is situated close to the external ear and involves complex language and auditory processing.

Area 37

Fusiform Gyrus / Occipitotemporal Gyrus – this region is largely involved in:

processing of color information
face and body recognition
word and number recognition

Areas 22, 39, 40

Wernicke’s area – the gyri that comprise this area may be larger or smaller in different people and itis responsible for speech fluency. More precisely, this area allows you to string words together in complete and sensical sentences. An easy way to temember is to think of “Wordy Wernicke”.

Areas 44,45

Broca’s area – this region is associated with the praxis of speech (motor speech programming). This includes:

being able to put together the binding elements of language
selecting information among competing sources
sequencing motor/expressive elements
cognitive control mechanisms for syntactic processing of sentences
construction of complex sentences and speech patterns

You can remember it by thinking of “Broken boca” where boca means ‘mouth’ in Spanish.

All Brodmann areas

Areas 3, 1 & 2 – Primary Somatosensory Cortex (frequently referred to as Areas 3, 1, 2 by convention)
Area 4 – Primary Motor Cortex
Area 5 – Somatosensory Association Cortex
Area 6 – Premotor cortex and Supplementary Motor Cortex (Secondary Motor Cortex) (Supplementary motor area)
Area 7 – Somatosensory Association Cortex
Area 8 – Includes Frontal eye fields
Area 9 – Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
Area 10 – Anterior prefrontal cortex (most rostral part of superior and middle frontal gyri)
Area 11 – Orbitofrontal area (orbital and rectus gyri, plus part of the rostral part of the superior frontal gyrus)
Area 12 – Orbitofrontal area (used to be part of BA11, refers to the area between the superior frontal gyrus and the inferior rostral sulcus)
Area 13 and Area 14* – Insular cortex
Area 15* – Anterior Temporal Lobe
Area 16 – Insular cortex
Area 17 – Primary visual cortex (V1)
Area 18 – Secondary visual cortex (V2)
Area 19 – Associative visual cortex (V3,V4,V5)
Area 20 – Inferior temporal gyrus
Area 21 – Middle temporal gyrus
Area 22 – Superior temporal gyrus, of which the caudal part is usually considered to contain the Wernicke's area
Area 23 – Ventral posterior cingulate cortex
Area 24 – Ventral anterior cingulate cortex.
Area 25 – Subgenual area (part of the Ventromedial prefrontal cortex)[4]
Area 26 – Ectosplenial portion of the retrosplenial region of the cerebral cortex
Area 27 – Piriform cortex
Area 28 – Ventral entorhinal cortex
Area 29 – Retrosplenial cingulate cortex
Area 30 – Part of cingulate cortex
Area 31 – Dorsal Posterior cingulate cortex
Area 32 – Dorsal anterior cingulate cortex
Area 33 – Part of anterior cingulate cortex
Area 34 – Dorsal entorhinal cortex (on the Parahippocampal gyrus)
Area 35 – Perirhinal cortex (in the rhinal sulcus)
Area 36 – Ectorhinal area, now part of the perirhinal cortex (in the rhinal sulcus)
Area 37 – Fusiform gyrus
Area 38 – Temporopolar area (most rostral part of the superior and middle temporal gyri)
Area 39 – Angular gyrus, considered by some to be part of Wernicke's area
Area 40 – Supramarginal gyrus considered by some to be part of Wernicke's area
Areas 41 and 42 – Auditory cortex
Area 43 – Primary gustatory cortex
Area 44 – Pars opercularis, part of the inferior frontal gyrus and part of Broca's area
Area 45 – Pars triangularis, part of the inferior frontal gyrus and part of Broca's area
Area 46 – Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex
Area 47 – Pars orbitalis, part of the inferior frontal gyrus
Area 48 – Retrosubicular area (a small part of the medial surface of the temporal lobe)
Area 49 – Parasubicular area in a rodent
Area 52 – Parainsular area (at the junction of the temporal lobe and the insula)

(*) Area only found in non-human primates.

Dive into our Brodmann area quiz and test your knowledge!

Lesions of Brodmann areas

Areas 1,2,3

A lesion in this area would cause:

agraphesthesia
astereognosia
loss of vibration, proprioception and fine touch (since 3rd order neurons of the medial-lemniscal pathway cannot synapse in the cerebral cortex)
potentially hemineglect if the non-dominant hemisphere is affected.

Area 4

A lesion in this area would cause paralysis of the contralateral side of the body, including facial palsy, arm or leg monoparesis, and hemiparesis.

Area 5

A lesion in the left superior parietal lobe would cause ideomotor apraxia, which is the loss of ability to produce purposeful, skilled movements as a result of brain pathology not due to physical weakness, paralysis, lack of coordination or sensory loss. Astereognosis (also known as tactile agnosia) is also possible, which would lead to loss of ability to recognize objects by feeling or handling them.

Area 6

A lesion here would affect sensory guidance of movement and control of proximal and trunk muscles. Damage of the lateral premotor area would result in kinetic apraxia (which would appear as coarse or unrefined movements that no longer have the appearance of being practiced over time). Other lesions would cause loss of other functional processes described.

Area 9

A lesion in the DLPFC will create difficulties in inhibiting responses and result in dysexecution syndrome, which leads to problems with affect, social judgement, executive memory, abstract thinking, and intentionality.

Area 10

A lesion here is similar to what would be seen in Area 9, since the two areas are associated.

Area 17

Depending on where and how damage and lesions occur to this region, partial or complete cortical blindness can result; for example, if the upper bank of the calcarine sulcus is damaged, then the lower bank of the visual field is affected.

Area 22

Lesions in this area results in:

difficulty finding words
semantic paraphasias
prosopagnosia (the acquired inability to recognize faces)
disturbances in drawing

Areas 22, 39, 40

A lesion here causes language disorders characterized by fluent speech paraphasias where a lot of words are jumbled and nonsensical sentences are spoken. There may also be language comprehension deficits.

Areas 44, 45

Lesions in this area cause Broca’s aphasia: a deficit in the ability to speak and produce the proper words/sounds, even though the afflicted person maintains the ability to comprehend language and to mentally formulate proper sentences.

Sources

All content published on Kenhub is reviewed by medical and anatomy experts. The information we provide is grounded on academic literature and peer-reviewed research. Kenhub does not provide medical advice. You can learn more about our content creation and review standards by reading our content quality guidelines.

References:

John Nolte: The Human Brain: An Introduction To Its Functional Anatomy, 6th edition, Mosby.

Illustrators:

Brodmann areas (overview) - Paul Kim
Precentral gyrus (cross section) - Paul Kim

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