Question

The bulk of brain myelination takes place from two months prenatally to two months after birth. However, brain myelination continues until well into the second decade of life in some areas of the cerebral cortex. The first 3 cortical regions to myelinate are the motor cortex, the olfactory cortex and the somatosensory cortex. What are the last 3 cortical areas to fully myelinate? describe their functions in detail.

Answer 1

The last three cortical areas of brain to myelinate are the Anterior Cingulate Cortex, Inferior Temporal Cortex and Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex.

Anterior Cingulate Cortex helps in detection of error, it helps in emotion, making decisions, moral and ethical thinking, monitoring of performances, motivation, attention. It also regulates heart rate and blood pressure in stressful situations.

Inferior Temporal Cortex helps in receiving information and recognition of faces, objects and various patterns based upon visual information and colour.

Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex helps in various cognitive functions like storing informations which can be manipulated which is known as working information, helps in making decisions which are moral, ethical and even risky. It is also involved in lying and deception i.e the ability to speak truth or to lie. It helps in planning.