Fusiform gyrus

The fusiform gyrus, occipitotemporal gyrus lateralis or Spindelwindung is a gyrus (from the Greek gyrus " turn " and from the Latin fusus " spindle" ) of the cerebral cortex of the temporal lobe.

Anatomical location

The fusiform gyrus is attributed to the temporal lobe. Laterally it is bounded by the occipitotemporal sulcus and the adjacent inferior temporal gyrus, towards the middle ( medial) from the sulcus rhinicus and collateral sulcus limited and adjacent medial occipitotemporal gyrus from.

Function and injury

The fusiform face area (FFA ) of the fusiform gyrus, in particular of the right temporal lobe, is necessary for the recognition of faces. Their dysfunction may lead to the inability of recognizing faces. Adjacent the FFA is the fusiform body area (FBA), which plays a role in the recognition of bodies and body parts.

Due to damage or inactivation of the fusiform gyrus - especially in the right hemisphere of the brain - it comes to prosopagnosia ( face blindness ), a disease in which you can not see from their faces (well-known ) people. For very large lesions can no longer recognize themselves in the mirror. Overall, the fusiform gyrus that is used to identify larger, more abstract object categories.