Definition
The caudate nucleus is an arcuate mass deep into the cortical hemispheres forming a part of the basal ganglia. Apart from being involved in the smooth orchestration of motor actions, it has been recently implicated in other functions like learning, memory, emotion, and language.
Nomenclature
Striatum/neostriatum = Caudate nucleus (nucleus caudatus) + putamen
Corpus striatum (dorsal division) = Caudate nucleus + putamen + globus pallidus
Current Knowledge
Anatomy
The caudate nucleus has a globular head, tapering body, and down curving tail. The head lies in the floor and lateral wall of the anterior horn of the lateral ventricle, whereas the body runs in the floor. Medially, the caudate nucleus abuts the thalamus; in the floor of the ventricle, this junction forms a groove known as the sulcus terminalis that lodges the stria terminalis of the choroids plexus. The corpus callosum runs above the head and body. The caudate nucleus is separated from the lentiform nucleus by the...
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Shroff, S. (2018). Caudate Nucleus. In: Kreutzer, J.S., DeLuca, J., Caplan, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Clinical Neuropsychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_302
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57111-9_302
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Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-57110-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-57111-9
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