Library · Anatomy
Hippocampus
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The hippocampus is a piece of gray matter, which is where the cell bodies of neurons sit, folded along the inner surface of the temporal lobe, the part of the brain that lies at the level of the temple. It is tucked inside the lateral ventricle, one of the fluid-filled cavities in the brain. Its name comes from its shape: in cross section it looks like a seahorse.
Its job is memory, but not just any kind. Together with the parahippocampal region that surrounds it, the hippocampus is essential for processing what has just happened and turning it into long-term memory. It is the step from the quick note to the permanent file.
The proof that this step lives there is painful and clear. When those regions are damaged on both sides, the person stops forming new memories: they can hold a conversation and not remember it a while later.
In brief
The hippocampus is a ridge of gray matter that folds along the inner surface of the temporal lobe, inside the temporal horn of the lateral ventricle.
The seahorse that a cross section of the hippocampus looks like.
Together with the parahippocampal region of the medial temporal lobe, it is essential for memory processing: it turns what was just registered into long-term memory.
When those regions are damaged on both sides, the person loses recent memory and no longer forms new memories.
Sources (1)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingNeuroanatomy, Hippocampus, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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