Corpus Callosum · What Is It, Location, Function, and More

Published: Jul 30, 2025
Author: Maria Emfietzoglou, MD•
Editor: Alyssa Haag, MD•
Editor: Ian Mannarino, MD, MBA•
Editor: Kelsey LaFayette, DNP, ARNP, FNP-C•
Editor: Lahav Constantini, MD
Illustrator: Jessica Reynolds, MS•
Copyeditor: David G. Walker
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What is the corpus callosum?

The corpus callosum is a thick bundle of nerve fibers that connects the two cerebral hemispheres, allowing them to communicate. It’s also involved in movement control, cognitive functions, and vision. Dysfunction of the corpus callosum can occur due to aging, seizures, stroke, and infections. Additionally, failure of the corpus callosum to develop may be due to maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy.  

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Where is the corpus callosum located?

The corpus callosum is located in the center of the brain at the base of the longitudinal fissure, which is a deep, midline, sagittal groove that connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres. The corpus callosum is part of the white matter of the brain, which is made up of myelinated axons that are extensions of the neuronal cell bodies. It’s one of the largest white matter structures in the nervous system, containing over 200 million axons. It has four parts: the rostrum, genu, body, and splenium. The body is the central and longest part of the corpus callosum; it continues rostrally as the genu and caudally as the splenium.  

What is the role of the corpus callosum?

The main role of the corpus callosum is to serve as a conduit allowing information to transmit from one side of the brain to the other (e.g., from the left to right frontal lobes). It’s also hypothesized to play a major role in movement control, cognitive functions such as memory and learning, and vision.  

What causes dysfunction of the corpus callosum?

There are various causes of corpus callosum dysfunction. These include aging, which can cause weakness in the integrity of corpus callosum; and early infantile epileptic encephalopathy, which is a condition characterized by recurrent and unprovoked seizures during early infancy. Less common causes of dysfunction include stroke, infections, and tumors.  

Dysfunction of the corpus callosum can also be due to partial or complete agenesis, or the failure to develop, of the corpus callosum in a newborn. The most common cause is maternal alcohol consumption during pregnancy, which can lead to fetal alcohol syndrome characterized by the absence of the corpus callosum, growth retardation, intellectual disability, and craniofacial defects. However, it can also occur due to genetic syndromes that run in families such as Aicardi syndrome or Chiari malformation, as well as infections during pregnancy.  

What are the most important facts to know about the corpus callosum?

Corpus callosum is a large white matter nerve tract that is located deep to the longitudinal fissure, which connects the left and right cerebral hemispheres. It’s also involved in movement control, cognitive functions, and vision. Causes of dysfunction include damage due to aging, early infantile epileptic encephalopathy, as well as agenesis of the corpus callosum due to fetal alcohol syndrome.  
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References

Brown WS, Paul LK. The neuropsychological syndrome of agenesis of the corpus callosum. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2019;25(3):324-330. doi:10.1017/S135561771800111X 


Daroff RB, Jankovic J, Mazziotta JC, Pomeroy SL. Bradley's Neurology in Clinical Practice. London, UK: Elsevier; 2016.  


Liu Y, Hsu CH, Huang CC, et al. Connectivity-based topographical changes of the corpus callosum during aging. Front Aging Neurosci. 2021;13:753236. Published 2021 Oct 20. doi:10.3389/fnagi.2021.753236  


Ma Y, Liu Y, Yan X, Ouyang Y. Alien hand syndrome, a rare presentation of corpus callosum and cingulate infarction. J Neurol Sci. 2023;452:120739. doi:10.1016/j.jns.2023.120739 


Vaddiparti A, Huang R, Blihar D, et al. The evolution of corpus callosotomy for epilepsy management. World Neurosurg. 2021;145:455-461. doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2020.08.178