The arcuate fasciculus is the thick bundle of myelinated nerve fibers which links up the Broca's area with the Wernicke's area, which are the two language centers of the brain. Thus, this cerebral fiber track goes from the inferior frontal gyrus of the frontal lobe to the posterior area of the temporal lobe's superior gyrus, overlapping a small area in the parietal lobe, and vice versa. The human being is the only primate endowed with this bundle of cortical neuron axons.
Function
The function of the arcuate fasciculus is to make possible human speech, language. It articulates or coordinates the motor verbal function of the Broca's area in the frontal lobe with the semantic and syntactic comprehension of the Wernicke's area in the temporal-parietal region.
Damage to the arcuate fasciculus can cause a form of aphasia known as conduction aphasia, where auditory comprehension and speech articulation are preserved, but people find it difficult to repeat heard speech.
Below, drawing/diagram of the different internal nerve fiber bundles of the brain, showing the arcuate fasciculus, which is number 5.
