The Mysterious Orbitofrontal Cortex. Foreword

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Abstract
One of the least explored and least understood regions of the primate cerebral cortex is the orbitofrontal cortex, a part of the frontal lobe that lies on the roof of the orbit. Classic clinical evidence suggests that the orbitofrontal cortex is involved in critical human functions, such as social adjustment and the control of mood, drive and responsibility, traits that are crucial in defining the ‘personality’ of an individual. Phineas Gage is a paradigmatic patient, who, after suffering major destruction of the orbital and medial prefrontal cortices in both hemispheres, was portrayed as no longer being himself. In recent years, diverse functional studies have identified activations in the orbitofrontal cortex, suggesting that this prefrontal field is a component of brain systems critically engaged in memory, reward and decision-making mechanisms. These functions may well be considered as basic components of higher emotional and social behavior presumably involving this part of the cortex. The mounting evidence that the orbitofrontal cortex holds many clues to the ways in which complex behaviors are regulated prompted one of us (W.S.) to organize, during the June 1998 Forum of European Neuroscience held in Berlin, a symposium entitled ‘The Mysterious Orbitofrontal Cortex’. The high interest shown in the symposium argued the opportunity of collecting the most recent research devoted to unravelling the structure, function and dysfunction of the orbitofrontal cortex, in both humans and non-human primates.

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