Brain folding shapes the branching pattern of the middle cerebral artery
Fig 3
Anatomy of the insula and its limiting opercula.
The Sylvan fissure (arrows) is the most distinctive fold of the lateral hemispheric surface (A). Although it resembles other cortical sulci the Sylvian fissure runs deeper than any other and connects the lateral hemispheres with the basal cisterns. The frontal and temporal lobe regions limiting this fold are named opercula and bound the superior and inferior aspect of the fissure; its medial aspect is formed by the insula, a unique cortical region with distinctive convergent shallow folds (B). The insula and the opercula limit the divisions of the fissure into its principal components (C).