Claustrum

Brain: Claustrum
Horizontal section of right cerebral hemisphere.
Gray's	subject #189 836
NeuroNames	hier-234
MeSH	Claustrum

The claustrum (latin for barrier) is a thin layer of grey matter lying between the extreme capsule and external capsule in the brain. The thickness of this layer is 1-2 mm. The external capsule separates the claustrum from nucleus lentifromis. The extreme capsule on the other side separates it from the grey matter of the insula. Very little is known about its function, although it has reciprocal connections with the cerebral cortex. Some authors consider the claustrum to be a separate part from nuclei lentiformis, others a separate part of the insular cortex, while a third party of authors states that it consists of two areas or parts: insular and temporal. Contemporary anatomy states that the claustrum and corpus amygdaloideum do not belong to the basal nuclei.

Francis Crick, a neuroscientist who was keen on studying the neural correlate of consciousness, pointed to the claustrum as one of the most probable key components of consciousness in one of his last works [1].

Additional images

Coronal section	Coronal section of brain immediately in front of pons.	Coronal section of brain through intermediate mass of third ventricle.	Section of brain showing upper surface of temporal lobe.
Coronal section of brain through anterior commissure.

References

• Francis C. Crick and Christof Koch (2005), "What is the function of the claustrum?," Phil. Trans. R. Soc. Lond. B. Biol. Sci., volume 360, number 1458, pp. 1271-1279, DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2005.1661.

External links

• BrainMaps at UCDavis Claustrum

• Claustrum at eMedicine Dictionary

Brain: telencephalon (Basal ganglia)
Basal ganglia	Striatum (Putamen,Caudate nucleus, Nucleus accumbens) - Globus pallidus (lateral globus pallidus, medial globus pallidus) Claustrum - Subthalamic nucleus - Substantia nigra