Dentate gyrus
Gyrus dentatus
Definition
The dentate gyrus forms part of the hippocampal formation, which consists of the hippocampus, dentate gyrus, and subiculum.
Located between the subiculum below and the hippocampus above, the dentate gyrus is a thin layer of grey matter. This arrangement is a result of the medial temporal lobe (including the hippocampal formation) folding sideways during embryological development. The dentate gyrus extends towards the splenium of the corpus callosum alongside the fimbria of the hippocampus. From there, it curves above and around the body of corpus callosum. The grey matter of the dentate gyrus then continues as the indusium griseum, a residual sheet of grey matter on the upper surface of the corpus callosum. Due to this curving and twisting, both these structures now lie dorsal to the fornix, whereas previously they were located ventral to the fimbria of fornix.
Next, anterior and inferior to the corpus callosum, the dentate gyrus (or indusium griseum) connects with the paraterminal gyrus.
References
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Text written by Muhammad A. Javaid, MD, PhD © 2024 IMAIOS.
Snell, R.S. (2010). ‘Chapter 9: Reticular formation and limbic system’, in Clinical Neuroanatomy. (7th ed.) Philadelphia: Wolters Kluwer Health/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, pp. 307-312.
Blumenfield, H. (2002). ‘Chapter 18: Limbic system: Homeostasis, Olfaction, Memory, and Emotion’ in Neuroanatomy through Clinical Cases. Sinauer Associates, Inc., Sunderland, MA 01375 U.S.A. pp.771 (Fig. 18.7).
