Cerebellum

The cerebellum is a brain region important for a number of motor and cognitive functions, including learning, time perception, and precise movement. It is found at the bottom rear of the head (the hindbrain), directly above the brainstem. Patients with cerebellar dysfunction have problems with walking and balance, and accurate hand and arm movements. Recent brain imaging studies (using fMRI) show that the cerebellum is important for language processing and selective attention. The cerebellum is thought to be deficient in neuropsychiatric disorders such as dyslexia and autism.

The cerebellum looks similar in all animals, from fish to mice to humans. This has been taken as evidence that it performs a common function, such as regulating motor learning and the timing of movements, across the evolutionary tree. Studies of simple forms of motor learning, such as adaptation of the vestibulo-ocular reflex and eyeblink conditioning, are demonstrating that the timing and amplitude of learned movements are encoded by the cerebellum.

External links

• A list of laboratories that do research on the cerebellum, around the world.