Cortical area · one in each half of the brain
Medial orbitofrontal cortex
Also called Medial OFC, Part of the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC), Gyrus rectus (its innermost strip)
The inner underside of the frontal lobe: where pleasure and feelings guide choices.
The medial orbitofrontal cortex is the inner part of the underside of the frontal lobe, near the midline just above your nose and eyes. It is part of a larger zone called the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, which helps turn feelings into decisions. It responds to many kinds of rewards, such as tasty food, and helps compare very different things on one scale of value.
Where it is
On the underside of the frontal lobe, close to the midline where the two halves of the brain meet, just above the nasal cavity and the inner corners of your eyes.
What it does
Sensing pleasure
It responds to pleasant experiences of many kinds, such as a delicious taste.
Comparing options
It helps put different kinds of rewards on one scale, so you can decide between, say, a movie night and extra sleep.
Thinking ahead
It helps you weigh long-term results, so a quick reward does not outweigh a bigger loss later.
Calming fear
Together with the front of the cingulate, it helps quiet the amygdala when something scary turns out to be safe.
Moral feelings
It adds emotional weight to moral and social choices, such as caring about harm to others.
Think of it as a universal currency exchange: it converts apples, songs and smiles into one common value so you can compare them and choose.
Works with
- AmygdalaIt helps tame fear signals from the amygdala and learns emotional value from it.
- Nucleus accumbensTogether they form a core part of the reward system, turning value into motivation.
- Ventral tegmental areaDopamine cells here send reward signals that help it learn what is worth wanting.
- HypothalamusLinks with the hypothalamus connect its sense of value to body needs like hunger.
- Rostral anterior cingulate cortexIts neighbor just above works with it to regulate mood and emotion.
- Olfactory nerve & bulb (I)The olfactory bulb and the smell pathway lie right beneath it, on the floor of the skull.
When it goes wrong
Poor life decisions
People with damage here, like the famous railroad worker Phineas Gage, may keep their memory and intelligence but make poor life choices, take reckless risks and struggle with social rules.
Pressure from below
A slow-growing tumor on the floor of the skull here can press on both this area and the smell pathway, causing a loss of smell and gradual changes in personality and behavior.
Mood
Activity in this area and its neighbors is often altered in depression, which may affect how rewarding life feels.
For learning only, not medical advice. If you have a health concern, talk to a doctor.
Surprising facts
- In a 2007 study, people with damage in this region were more willing than others to approve of personally harming one person to save several.
- It lights up for many kinds of reward, from chocolate to more abstract prizes, suggesting the brain uses a shared code for what something is worth.
Where the name comes from
"Medial" comes from the Latin "medius", meaning middle, so it is the inner part, closest to the midline. Its innermost ridge is called the gyrus rectus, Latin for "straight ridge", because it runs straight from front to back.
Quick quiz
3 questions. Your answers are saved and come back in your daily review.
Which of these is a job of the medial orbitofrontal cortex?
Show the answer
Sensing pleasure. It responds to pleasant experiences of many kinds, such as a delicious taste.
Sensing pleasure. It responds to pleasant experiences of many kinds, such as a delicious taste.
The medial orbitofrontal cortex is part of which larger structure?
Show the answer
Orbitofrontal cortex. It belongs to the orbitofrontal cortex.
Orbitofrontal cortex. It belongs to the orbitofrontal cortex.
Which part fits this description? "Like a universal currency exchange: it converts apples, songs and smiles into one common value so you can compare them and choose."
Show the answer
Medial orbitofrontal cortex. It is the medial orbitofrontal cortex. The inner underside of the frontal lobe: where pleasure and feelings guide choices.
Medial orbitofrontal cortex. It is the medial orbitofrontal cortex. The inner underside of the frontal lobe: where pleasure and feelings guide choices.
These parts now come back in your daily review, just before you would forget them.
Practice it and its neighbors in 3DSources
- Gyrus rectus, Radiopaedia
- Informatic parcellation of the network involved in the computation of subjective value, Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (Oxford Academic)
- Selective deficit in personal moral judgment following damage to ventromedial prefrontal cortex, Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience (Oxford Academic)
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