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Somatosensory Functions and the Parietal Lobe

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Neuroanatomy for the Neuroscientist

Abstract

The parietal lobe is the middle lobe of the cerebrum, is found on the lateral surface of the hemisphere, and consists of postcentral gyrusa and superior and inferior parietal lobules. In this region of the cerebrum, one finds major functional differences between the left hemisphere which is dominant for language and the right hemisphere that is important for body imagery. The pain pathway has been discussed in Chap. 3, spinal cord; Chap. 4, brain stem; and Chap. 6, diencephalon. In this chapter, we will cover the pathways subserving tactile information for (1) the extremities, the thorax and abdomen, and the posterior columns and (2) the trigeminal systems subserving tactile information from the head. The importance of these pathways is apparent when one walks in the dark, drinks, or eats.

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Jacobson, S., Marcus, E.M., Pugsley, S. (2018). Somatosensory Functions and the Parietal Lobe. In: Neuroanatomy for the Neuroscientist. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-60187-8_14

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