Structural Organization of Cingulate Cortex: Areas, Neurons, and Somatodendritic Transmitter Receptors

Although cingulate cortex is one of the largest components of the limbic system, it has remained an enigma to neuroscientists over the past century. This is because the structure of cingulate cortex undergoes complex transitions and many of its connections do not conform to the “rules” of neocortical organization. Moreover, it is difficult to access the medial surface of the cerebral cortex, and so cingulate cortex has remained largely silent in functional and neurological assessments. Its role in responses to noxious stimuli, movement, vocalization, motivation, and learning and memory only now is becoming apparent. Positron emission tomography studies of cerebral blood flow and metabolism are now exposing cingulate cortex to clinical assessments that were not previously feasible with electroencephalo-graphic techniques. These studies show important roles for cingulate cortex in attention and responses to painful stimuli, and they have confirmed in vitro findings of high opioid receptor binding. These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.