Lateral sulcus

The lateral sulcus (also called sylvian fissure or lateral fissure) is one of the most prominent features of the human brain. The lateral sulcus is a deep fissure in each hemisphere that separates the frontal and parietal lobes from the temporal lobe. The insular cortex lies deep within the lateral sulcus.Lateral sulcus shown in red (animation) The lateral sulcus (also called sylvian fissure or lateral fissure) is one of the most prominent features of the human brain. The lateral sulcus is a deep fissure in each hemisphere that separates the frontal and parietal lobes from the temporal lobe. The insular cortex lies deep within the lateral sulcus. The lateral sulcus divides both the frontal lobe and parietal lobe above from the temporal lobe below. It is in both hemispheres of the brain. The lateral sulcus is one of the earliest-developing sulci of the human brain. It first appears around the fourteenth gestational week. The insular cortex lies deep within the lateral sulcus. The lateral sulcus has a number of side branches. Two of the most prominent and most regularly found are the ascending (also called vertical) ramus and the horizontal ramus of the lateral fissure, which subdivide the inferior frontal gyrus. The lateral sulcus also contains the transverse temporal gyri, which are part of the primary and below the surface auditory cortex. Due to a phenomenon called the Yakovlevian torque, the lateral sulcus is often longer and less curved on the left hemisphere than on the right. It is also located near the Sylvian point. The area lying around the Sylvian fissure is often referred to as the perisylvian cortex. The human secondary somatosensory cortex (S2, SII) is a functionally-defined region of cortex in the parietal operculum on the ceiling of the lateral sulcus. The cerebral cortex was not depicted in a realistic manner until the 17th century with the Sylvian fissure being first accurately painted by Girolamo Fabrici d'Acquapendente in 1600 to provide plates for his Tabulae Pictae.