| Brain: Medial temporal lobe | ||
|---|---|---|
| [[Image:{{{Image}}}|250px|center|]] | ||
| {{{Caption}}} | ||
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| Section of brain showing upper surface of temporal lobe. | ||
| Latin | lobus temporalis | |
| Gray's | subject #189 823 | |
| Part of | Brain | |
| Components | ||
| Artery | Middle cerebral and Posterior cerebral | |
| Vein | ||
| BrainInfo/UW | hier-107 | |
| MeSH | A08.186.211.730.885.213.863 | |
The medial temporal lobe is the inner surface of the temporal lobe. It includes the hippocampal formation, the parahippocampal gyrus and the entorhinal cortex
Function[]
The medial temporal lobes (near the Sagittal plane that divides left and right cerebral hemispheres) consists of structures that are vital for declarative or long-term memory. Declarative (denotative) or explicit memory is conscious memory divided into semantic memory (facts) and episodic memory (events).[1]:194 Medial temporal lobe structures that are critical for long-term memory include the amygdala, brainstem, and hippocampus, along with the surrounding hippocampal region consisting of the perirhinal, parahippocampal, and entorhinal neocortical regions.[1]:196 The hippocampus is critical for memory formation, and the surrounding medial temporal cortex is currently theorized to be critical for memory storage.[1]:21 The prefrontal and visual cortices are also involved in explicit memory.[1]:21
Research has shown that lesions in the hippocampus of monkeys results in limited impairment of function, whereas extensive lesions that include the hippocampus and the medial temporal cortex result in severe impairment.[2]
Additional images[]
See also[]
Further reading[]
- Kensinger, E. A., Ullman, M. T., & Corkin, S. (2001). Bilateral medial temporal lobe damage does not affect lexical or grammatical processing: Evidence from amnesic patient H.M. Hippocampus, 11, 337-346. Full text
External links[]