General Structure and Function of Brain

1. Definition of Brain
Brain is a three-pound organ that controls all functions of the body, interprets
information from the outside world, and embodies the essence of the mind and soul.
Intelligence, creativity, emotion, and memory are a few of many things governed by the
brain. Brain is the most important organ in the body. If the brain stops working then all body
organs cannot function at all.
The brain receives information through five senses: sight, smell, touch, taste, and
hearing. Often many at one time. It assembles the messages in a way that has meaning for us,
and can store that information in our memory. The brain controls our thoughts, memory and
speech, movement of the arms and legs, and the function of many organs within our body.
Protected within the skull, the brain is composed of the cerebrum, cerebellum, and
brainstem.
a) Cerebrum: is the largest part of the brain and is
composed of right and left hemispheres. It performs
higher functions like interpreting touch, vision and
hearing, as well as speech, reasoning, emotions,
learning, and fine control of movement.
b) Cerebellum: is located under the cerebrum. Its
function is to coordinate muscle movements,
maintain posture, and balance.
c) Brain stem: acts as a relay center connecting the
cerebrum and cerebellum to the spinal cord. It
performs many automatic functions such as breathing, heart rate, body temperature,
wake and sleep cycles, digestion, sneezing, coughing, vomiting, and swallowing.

2. Structure of Brain
The brain is divided into two halves, the right and left hemisphere. Both shape
resembling a walnut joined at the middle, with little space between them. These hemispheres
connect to the brain stem, which connects to the spinal cord. The two hemispheres remain in
contact and communication with one another by the corpus callosum. The brain, along with
the spinal cord, is referred to as the central nervous system. Each hemisphere is covered by
the cortex, an outer layer of cell matter responsible for higher brain functions in humans and
animals.
The cerebral cortex, also known as cerebral mantle or gray matter, is the outer layer of
neural tissue of the cerebrum of the brain in humans and other mammals. Its surface has
many folds, giving it a wrinkled appearance. The folds consist of many deep grooves called
sulci and raised areas called gyri. The cerebral cortex developed later in the evolution
process. In fish, it is barely visible and one of the smallest parts. But in humans, it has grown
in size and complexity. Over time, as the number and complexity of brain cells increase, the
cerebral cortex becomes denser, appearing less pink and more grey.
The human brain is divided into two cerebral hemispheres, each consisting of four lobes,
which are frontal lobe, parietal lobe, temporal lobe, and occipital lobe. These divisions are
based on physical features rather than actual separations. Each hemisphere has these lobes
and their respective functions.
a) The Frontal Lobe is the largest lobe, located in front
of the cerebral hemispheres. It extends from the area
behind the forehead back to the precentral gyrus. As a
whole, the frontal lobe is responsible for higher
cognitive functions such as memory, emotions,
impulse control, problem solving, social interaction,
and motor function.
b) The Parietal Lobe is located posterior to the frontal lobe and superior to the temporal
lobe. This lobe is important for processing and interpreting somatosensory input. It
also responsible for integrating sensory input, and construction of a spatial coordinate
system.
c) The Temporal Lobe sit behind the ears and are the second largest lobe. They are most
commonly associated with processing auditory information and with the encoding of
memory. It is also believed this lobe play an important role in processing affect or
emotions, language, and certain aspects of visual perception.
d) The Occipital lobes is the smallest of the four lobes, located at the back of the head
and is responsible for visual perception, including colour, form and motion.

3. Language Processing Area

Language processing involves various areas located around the Sylvian and Rolando
fissures. These areas are responsible for tasks such as speaking, listening, reading, writing,
and singing. Specific regions have been identified for different language functions:
1) The front part of the parietal lobe along the Rolando fissure deals with sensation
and may have connections to speech and auditory areas.
2) The area in front of the Rolando fissure is involved in motor functioning and is
relevant to speaking and writing.
3) Wernicke’s area, located in the upper back part of the temporal lobe, extending
into the parietal lobe, plays a major role in speech comprehension.
4) Heschl’s gyri, found in the upper temporal lobe, is responsible for auditory
reception.
5) Broca’s area, situated in the lower back part of the frontal lobe, is crucial for
encoding speech.
6) Exner’s centre, found towards the back of the frontal lobe, is potentially involved
in the motor control of writing.
 7) A part of the left parietal region, close to Wernicke’s area, is responsible for
manual signing.
8) The back of the occipital lobe is primarily involved in processing visual stimuli.
These areas are key in understanding the language processing system within the
brain.
Additionally, some of the neural pathways involved in processing spoken language, such
as speech production, reading aloud, and speech comprehension. In speech production,
Wernicke’s area generates the basic structure of the utterance, which is encoded in Broca’s
area. The motor program is then passed to the motor area governing articulatory organs.
When reading aloud, the written form is received by the visual cortex and transmitted to
Wernicke’s area, associated with auditory representation, then sent to Broca’s area. In speech
comprehension, signals from the ear reach the auditory cortex and are transferred to
Wernicke’s area for interpretation.