Preface

The prefrontal cortex reaches its greatest development in the human brain, making up near‐ ly one third of the neocortex. Due to its remarkable evolution, the prefrontal cortex plays an important role in higher integrative functions such as information processing, thinking, un‐ derstanding, attention, behavior, motivation, emotions, working memory, and analysis. This book brings together theoretical and technical research advances on the prefrontal cortex, from the basic explanations of the neuronal architecture of the prefrontal cortex and its anat‐ omy, presenting it as a morphological substrate for many psychological conditions, through normal and altered connectivity and its manifestation in different behavior and identifica‐ tion of organizational levels inside the prefrontal cortex through different neuroimaging methods. This book also provides an interdisciplinary view of the prefrontal cortex and its issues and discovers the main role of this part of brain in psychosocial, economic, and cul‐ tural adaptation.

In the first section of the book, *Neuroanatomical and Developmental Features of Prefrontal Cortex*, an overview of the developmental period of brain structure is presented with the most im‐ portant moments that can contribute to possible clinical issues if damaged. Childhood presents the most vulnerable part of life and the developmental part of the brain structures that appear to be of major importance. Neuroanatomical and neurophysiological overview explains the connection and specific relationship between different brain structures, which are morphological substrates for integrated psychological function and consciousness.

In the *Clinical Presentation of Prefrontal Cortex*, an overview of hemoglobin-oxyhemoglobin variation in rehabilitation and consciousness and its issues in cerebro rehabilitation model is presented. The role of the prefrontal cortex in social interaction through language communi‐ cation explains the importance of neurocognitive components and neuropragmatics. A new approach to understanding normal and abnormal relations between metacognition and mindreading discovers the main role of this part of the brain in psychosocial, economic, and cultural adaptation.

The prefrontal cortex is involved in managing complex processes like logic, problem solv‐ ing, planning and memory, decision making, planning complex cognitive behavior, person‐ ality expression, and moderating social behavior. The higher cognitive *functions*, such as working memory, mental imagery, and willed action, are all intimately associated with con‐ sciousness. It is basic anatomical substrate or an integral link between individual life, its will to work and live, and healthy personality. This brain region has been implicated in many more undefined dynamic actions within the highest brain functions, and this area needs

#### XII Preface

more investigation. Future perspectives include many interdisciplinary approaches and dif‐ ferent methods as well as many organized research paradigms for the investigation of one of the most complex parts of the brain, the prefrontal cortex.

#### **Ana Starcevic, MD, PhD**

**Section 1**

**Neuroanatomical and Developmental Features**

**of Prefrontal Cortex**

Editor Associate Professor of Anatomy Psychiatrist Institute of Anatomy Medical Faculty University of Belgrade, Serbia

#### **Branislav Filipovic, MD, PhD**

Co-editor Full Professor of Anatomy Psychiatrist Institute of Anatomy Medical Faculty University of Belgrade, Serbia **Neuroanatomical and Developmental Features of Prefrontal Cortex**

more investigation. Future perspectives include many interdisciplinary approaches and dif‐ ferent methods as well as many organized research paradigms for the investigation of one of

**Ana Starcevic, MD, PhD**

Institute of Anatomy Medical Faculty

Associate Professor of Anatomy

University of Belgrade, Serbia **Branislav Filipovic, MD, PhD**

Full Professor of Anatomy

University of Belgrade, Serbia

Institute of Anatomy Medical Faculty

Editor

Psychiatrist

Co-editor

Psychiatrist

the most complex parts of the brain, the prefrontal cortex.

VIII Preface

**Chapter 1**

**Provisional chapter**

**Development Period of Prefrontal Cortex**

**Keywords:** development, prefrontal cortex, infancy, childhood

that as a discrete unit can only tell us so much [2].

**Development Period of Prefrontal Cortex**

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.78697

This chapter outlines the issues associated with the development of prefrontal cortex in children and adolescents, and describes the developmental profile of executive processes across childhood. The prefrontal cortex plays an essential role in various cognitive functions and little is known about how such neural mechanisms develop during childhood yet. To better understand this issue, we focus the literature on the development of the prefrontal cortex during early childhood, the changes in structural architecture, neural activity, and cognitive abilities. The prefrontal cortex undergoes maturation during childhood with a reduction of synaptic and neuronal density, a growth of dendrites, and an increase in white matter volume. With these neuroanatomical changes, neural networks construct appropriate for complex cognitive processing. The organization of prefrontal cortical circuitry may have been critical to the occurrence of human-specific executive and social-emotional functions, and developmental pathology in these same systems underlies many psychiatric disorders; therefore, if we understand these developmental process well, we could better analyze the development of psychiatric

In the past two decades, an increasing number of studies have examined the human frontal lobe and PFC utilizing a wide variety of methodologies including stereology, MRI, minicolumn analysis, and DTI [1]. A number of recent studies have examined the relative size of gray and white matter in the frontal lobe or PFC, while others have examined the volume, neuron density, and columnar organization of functional subregions within the PFC. The frontal lobe includes several anatomical components and different functional areas, and, so it is thought

> © 2016 The Author(s). Licensee InTech. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

© 2018 The Author(s). Licensee IntechOpen. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use,

distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.78697

Merve Cikili Uytun

Merve Cikili Uytun

**Abstract**

disorders.

**1. Introduction**

#### **Development Period of Prefrontal Cortex Development Period of Prefrontal Cortex**

DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.78697

#### Merve Cikili Uytun Merve Cikili Uytun

Additional information is available at the end of the chapter Additional information is available at the end of the chapter

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.78697

**Abstract**

This chapter outlines the issues associated with the development of prefrontal cortex in children and adolescents, and describes the developmental profile of executive processes across childhood. The prefrontal cortex plays an essential role in various cognitive functions and little is known about how such neural mechanisms develop during childhood yet. To better understand this issue, we focus the literature on the development of the prefrontal cortex during early childhood, the changes in structural architecture, neural activity, and cognitive abilities. The prefrontal cortex undergoes maturation during childhood with a reduction of synaptic and neuronal density, a growth of dendrites, and an increase in white matter volume. With these neuroanatomical changes, neural networks construct appropriate for complex cognitive processing. The organization of prefrontal cortical circuitry may have been critical to the occurrence of human-specific executive and social-emotional functions, and developmental pathology in these same systems underlies many psychiatric disorders; therefore, if we understand these developmental process well, we could better analyze the development of psychiatric disorders.

**Keywords:** development, prefrontal cortex, infancy, childhood
