Three-dimensional reconstruction of the human central sulcus reveals a morphological correlate of the hand area

One way to improve our understanding of cortical anatomy is to visualizethe three-dimensional (3D) shape of the cerebral sulci which is normallyhidden. Here, we reconstructed the 3D morphology of the central sulcus (CS)in 17 normal subjects, using conventional magnetic resonance images anddedicated software. We found that the 3D morphology was remarkablyconsistent in all central sulci. Our analyses revealed three differentregions (upper, middle and lower), which were easily identifiable bymorphological criteria and sharply interconnected in the reconstructed CS.These morphological regions appear to have a strong functionalsignificance, since the middle region corresponded precisely to the 'handarea', as verified by hand vibration positron emission tomographyactivation studies in eight cases. These data suggest that the 3D anatomyof the cerebral cortex may facilitate sulcal recognition, and sulcalsubdivision into smaller morphological elements, bearing remarkablerelationships with functional cortical maps.