‘’STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS OF

BRAIN’’
 “DEFINATION OF BRAIN”
A part of central nervous system (CNS) enclosed in the skull
and continuous with the spinal cord through the foramen
magnum that is composed of neurons and supporting and
nutritive structures (as glia/glial cells), that integrates
sensory information from inside and outside the body in
controlling autonomic functions (as heartbeat and
respiration), in coordinating and directing correlated motor
responses, and in the process of learning
 “FUNCTIONS OF BRAIN”
 The human brain is a complex organ that allows us to think, move, feel, see,
hear, taste, and smell. It controls our body, receives information, analyzes
information, and stores information (our memories).
 The brain produces electrical signals, which, together with chemical
reactions, let the parts of the body communicate. Nerves send these signals
throughout the body.

COMPOSITION OF THE BRAIN 

 The brain consists of gray matter (40%) and white matter (60%)
contained within the skull. Brain cells include neurons and glial cells.
 The brain has three main parts:
 The cerebrum.
 The cerebellum.
 The brain stem (medulla oblongata). 
“SUBDIVISION OF CENTRAL
NERVOUS SYSTEM”
 “LOBES OF BRAIN AND ITS
FUNCTIONS”
FRONTAL LOBE: TEMPORAL LOBE:
 Movement  Speech
 Intelligence  Behavior
 Behavior  Memory
 Memory  Hearing
PARIETAL LOBE:  Vision
 Intelligence OCCIPITAL LOBE:
 Language  Vision
 Sensation
 Reading
“BRAIN AND LANGUAGE”
 “BRAIN AND LANGUAGE INPUT AND
OUTPUT”
 Brain consists of areas that are responsible for the perception and
execution of language .
 There are two aspects to communication;
 The sensory aspect(language input), involving eyes and ears.
 The Motor aspect(language output),involving vocalization and its
control.
SENSORY ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATION:
1) The destruction of auditory or visual association areas of the
cerebral cortex can result in inability to understand the spoken
or written word.
2) These effects are called auditory receptive aphasia and visual
receptive aphasia or more commonly word deafness and
blindness which is also called dyslexia(inability to read or write).
“MOTOR ASPECT OF COMMUNICATION”

The process of speech involves two principal stages of

mentation;
1) Formation of thoughts as well as choice of words to be
used in the mind.
2) Motor control of vocalization and the actual act of
vocalization.
 The formation of thoughts and even most choices of words
are the functions of sensory association areas of brain.
Wernicke’s area that is located in superior part of posterior
temporal gyrus is important for this ability.
 Therefore, the person who is a victim of either wernicke’s
or global aphasia is unable to formulate thoughts that are
to be communicated,
“LEARNING “
 “LEARNING”
“Learning is the act of acquiring new, or
modifying and reinforcing, existing
knowledge, behaviors, skills, values, or
preferences and may involve synthesizing
different types of information. The ability to
learn is possessed by humans, animals,
plants and some machines.”
 “DYSLEXIA”
There are two types of learning disabilities in reading.
 Basic Reading ( problem occurs when there is difficulty
understanding the relationship between sounds, letters and
words).
 Reading Comprehension (problem occurs when there is
an inability to grasp the meaning of words, phrases, and
paragraphs).
Signs of reading difficulty include problems with:
 Letter and word recognition.
 Understanding words and ideas.
 Reading speed and fluency.
 General vocabulary skills.
 “DYSGRAPHIA”

 Learning disabilities in writing can involve the physical act of

writing or the mental activity of comprehending and
synthesizing information.
 Basic Writing Disorder ;refers to physical difficulty forming
words and letters.
 Expressive Writing Disability ;indicates a struggle to organize
thoughts on paper.
 Symptoms of a written language learning disability revolve
around the act of writing. They include problems with:
 Neatness and consistency of writing
 Accurately copying letters and words
 Spelling consistency
 Writing organization and coherence
Dyslexia Difficulty reading Problems reading,
writing, spelling,
speaking

Dyscalculia Difficulty with math Problems doing math

problems,
understanding time,
using money

Dysgraphia  Difficulty with writing Problems with

handwriting, spelling,
organizing ideas

Dysphasia/Aphasia Difficulty with Problems

language understanding
spoken language,
poor reading
comprehension
“AREAS OF BRAIN ASSOCIATEDWITH
SPEECH ARTICULATION”
 “BROCA'S AREA”
 Broca’s area or the Broca area is a region in
which the frontal lobe of the dominant
hemisphere(usually the left) of brain is linked
with speech production.
 Broca area, also called convolution(complexity)
of Broca, region of the brain that contains
motor neurons involved in the control of speech.
This area, located in the frontal part of the left
hemisphere of the brain, was discovered in 1861
by French surgeon Paul Broca , who found that it
serves a vital role in the generation of speech
articulation.
“FORMATION OF BROCA’S AREA”
 It is made up of two areas;
 Pars Triangularis (Brodmann area 45)
 Pars Opercularis (Brodmann area 44).
 The Broca’s area is connected to other regions of
the brain , including the Wernicke area , by a
neuronal tract known as the arcuate fasciculus.
 In addition to serving a role in speech
production, the Broca’s area also is involved in
language comprehension, in motor activities
associated with hand movements, and in
sensorimotor learning and integration.
 “WERNICKE'S AREA”
 Wernicke's area is the region of the brain that is important
for language development.
 It is associated with the understanding of spoken and
written language.
 The Wernicke's area is located in the temporal lobe on the
left side of the brain but location may vary and is
responsible for the comprehension of speech .
  Language development or usage can be seriously impaired
by damage to this area of the brain.
 “SPEECH
DISORDERS/IMPAIRMENTS”
 “SPEECH ARTICULATION”
 Articulation means;
“The muscular movement of mouth, tongue ,larynx and
vocal cords”.
1) These all organs are responsible for the intonations, timing and
rapid changes in the intensities of sequential sounds.
2) Facial or laryngeal cortex activate these muscular regions and
help to control the sequences and intensities of muscular
contractions to articulate speech.
3) Destruction of any of these regions can cause either total or
partial inability to speak distinctly.
“SPEECH DISORDERS/IMPAIRMENTS”

“Speech disorders or speech impediments/impairments are a

type of communication disorder where 'normal' speech is
disrupted. “
 This can mean stuttering, lisps, etc. Someone who is unable
to speak due to a speech disorder is considered mute.
Enlisted below are some of major disorders/ impairments of
speech;
 Apraxia.
 Dysarthria.
 Stuttering etc.
Language disorder/impairment;
 Aphasia
 Apraxia of speech
It may result from stroke or progressive illness, and involves
inconsistent production of speech sounds and rearranging of sounds
in a word ("potato" may become "topato" and next "totapo").
Production of words becomes more difficult with effort, but common
phrases may sometimes be spoken spontaneously without effort.
Dysarthria
It is weakness or paralysis of speech muscles caused by damage to
the nerves and/or brain. Dysarthria is often caused
by strokes, parkinson’s disease, ALS, head or neck injuries, surgical
accident, or cerebral palsy.
Stuttering
 The disorder is characterized by disruptions in the production of
speech sounds, also called "disfluencies."  For instance, some words
are repeated and others are preceded by "um" or "uh.“
 “APRAXIA OF SPEECH”
 Apraxia of speech is a motor speech disorder.
 The messages from the brain to the mouth are disrupted, and
the person cannot move his or her lips or tongue to the right
place to say sounds correctly, even though the muscles are not
weak.
 The severity of apraxia depends on the nature of the brain
damage.
 Apraxia can occur in conjunction with dysarthria (muscle
weakness affecting speech production) or aphasia (language
difficulties related to neurological damage).
 Apraxia of speech is also known as acquired apraxia of
speech, verbal apraxia, and dyspraxia.
 “CAUSES OF APRAXIA”
 Apraxia of speech is caused by damage to the
parts of the brain that control coordinated muscle
movement.
 A common cause of acquired apraxia is stroke.
 Other causes include traumatic brain injury,
dementia, brain tumors, and progressive
neurological disorders.
“SIGNS/SYMPTOMS OF APRAXIA”
 Individuals with apraxia of speech know what words they
want to say, but their brains have difficulty coordinating
the muscle movements necessary to say all the sounds in
the words.
 As a result, they may say something completely different
or make up words (e.g., "Bipem" or "chicken" for
“kitchen").
 The person may recognize the error and try again—
sometimes getting it right, but sometimes saying
something else entirely.
 This situation can become quite frustrating for the
person.
“PATIENT’S PRESENTATION”
 Individuals with apraxia may demonstrate:
 Difficulty imitating and producing speech sounds,
marked by speech errors such as sound distortions,
substitutions, and/or omissions.
 Inconsistent speech errors.
 Groping of the tongue and lips to make specific sounds
and words.
 Slow speech rate.
 Impaired rhythm and prosody (intonation) of speech.
 Better automatic speech (e.g., Greetings) than
purposeful speech.
 Inability to produce any sound at all in severe cases.
“LANGUAGE DISORDERS”
‘’BROCA’S APHASIA(EXPRESSIVE)’’
 Broca’s aphasia is a non-fluent type of aphasia that is
commonly associated with verbal apraxia, relatively good
auditory comprehension, agrammatic speech, and poor
repetition.
 Because of the location of Broca’s area in the left hemisphere
of the brain, it is also commonly associated with weakness of
the arm and leg muscles of the right side of the body.
 Professionals like to use classifications of aphasia, such as
Broca’s aphasia, to have a frame of reference regarding the
patient’s abilities and areas of concern.
 When a stroke(Trauma/injury to brain) injures the frontal
regions of the left hemisphere, different kinds of language
problems can occur.
 This part of the brain is important for putting words
together to form complete sentences. Injury to the left
frontal area can lead to what is called Broca’s aphasia.
Survivors with Broca's aphasia:
 Can have great difficulty forming complete sentences.
 May get out some basic words to get their message across,
but leave out words like “is” or “the.”
 Often say something that doesn’t resemble a sentence.
 Can have trouble understanding sentences.
 Can make mistakes in following directions like “left, right,
under, and after.”
 For e.g: “Car…bump…boom!” This is not a complete
sentence, but it certainly expresses an important idea.
Sometimes these individuals will say a word that is close to
what they intend, but not the exact word; for example they
may say “car” when they mean “truck.”
“WERNICKE’S APHASIA(RECEPTIVE)”
 People with serious comprehension difficulties have
what is called Wernicke’s aphasia and:
 Often say many words that don’t make sense.
 May fail to realize they are saying the wrong words; for
instance, they might call a fork a “gleeble.”
 May string together a series of meaningless words that
sound like a sentence but don’t make sense.
 Have challenges because our dictionary of words is
shelved in a similar region of the left hemisphere, near
the area used for understanding words.
 “GLOBAL APHASIA”
 When a stroke(trauma/injury to brain) affects an
extensive portion of the front and back regions of the left
hemisphere, the result may be global aphasia. Survivors
with global aphasia:
 May have great difficulty in understanding words and
sentences.
 May have great difficulty in forming words and sentences.
 May understand some words.
 Get out a few words at a time.
 Have severe difficulties that prevent them from effectively
communicating