Superior semilunar lobule
Lobulus semilunaris superior
A large lobule on the upper and back part of each cerebellar hemisphere, lying just above the horizontal fissure.
At a glance
- English
- Superior semilunar lobule
- Latin (TA2)
- Lobulus semilunaris superior
- System
- Brain and spinal cord
- Region
- Head
- Side
- Paired, left and right
About the superior semilunar lobule
The superior semilunar lobule is a large crescent of folia on the back of each cerebellar hemisphere, in the posterior lobe. It is also known as crus I of the ansiform lobule. It lies mostly on the superior surface and extends round onto the posterior border of the cerebellum.
Its front edge is the posterior superior fissure, which separates it from the posterior quadrangular lobule. Its back edge is the horizontal fissure, the deep cleft that runs around the lateral and posterior margins of the cerebellum and divides its upper from its lower surface. Below the horizontal fissure lies the inferior semilunar lobule. Towards the midline the lobule narrows and is continuous with the folium of the vermis, a thin single folium of the vermis lying between the same fissures.
The lobule is part of the cerebrocerebellum, the large lateral portion of the hemisphere that is especially well developed in humans. It receives its input from the cerebral cortex through the pontine nuclei and the middle cerebellar peduncle, and returns its output through the dentate nucleus and the thalamus to the cortex. Besides helping to plan and coordinate movement, this lateral region is linked with prefrontal and parietal association cortex and takes part in non-motor functions, including working memory, language and planning.
A lesion of the lateral hemisphere produces clumsiness of the limbs on the same side, with intention tremor and poorly judged reaching. Damage to these lateral lobules has also been linked with subtle changes in thinking and mood.
Function and supply
- Function
- Part of the cerebrocerebellum; coordinates movement of the same side of the body and contributes to non-motor functions such as working memory and language.
- Blood supply
- Mainly the superior cerebellar artery, with the posterior inferior cerebellar artery near the horizontal fissure.
Anthromica
See the superior semilunar lobule where it really sits, with every layer of the body around it.
- Every layer, one body. Peel from muscle to bone, nerve, vessel and organ, and turn it any way.
- English and Latin. Every structure named the way your exam names it.
- Quiz until it sticks. Short drills on the structures you keep missing.
Free to start. No card.
