Hippocampal commissure
Commissura hippocampi
- Latin synonym: Commissura fornicis
- Synonym: Commissure of fornix
Definition
The hippocampal commissure (also described as the dorsal hippocampal commissure by Nasa et al. 2021), is a small, triangular commissural white-matter bundle that provides connections between temporal-lobe structures of the two cerebral hemispheres. It connects the corresponding crura of the fornix and crosses the midline beneath the corpus callosum, near the junction between the caudal part of its body and the rostral part of its splenium.
Despite its name, the hippocampal commissure does not simply connect the right and left hippocampi. A substantial proportion of its fibres are associated with the parahippocampal regions, and other temporal lobe areas.
Its precise function remains incompletely understood, although available evidence suggests a role in memory-related interhemispheric processing.
References
Nasa A, Gaughan C, Mahmoud M, Kelly JR, Roman E, Levins KJ, Barry D, Frodl T, O'Hanlon E, O'Keane V, Roddy DW. The human dorsal hippocampal commissure: Delineating connections across the midline using multi-modal neuroimaging in major depressive disorder. Neuroimage Rep. 2021 Oct 27;1(4):100062.
