Life Without Your Cerebellum

Luke Hollomon, M.S., DPT
Know Your Body
Published in
5 min readJan 30, 2019

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Tucked away at the back of your brain is a phenomenal, but ignored structure. This amalgamation of neurons contains almost 50% of the cells in your brain, but only takes up 10% of the space. Even so, it remains unextolled and little considered. In the words of researcher and neurologist Jeremy Schmahmann, it’s the “Rodney Dangerfield of the brain” because “It don’t get no respect.” It’s the cerebellum.

The cerebellum in lateral and anterior views, from Anatomography maintained by Life Science Databases (LSDB)

Even though the cerebellum has so many neurons and takes up so much space, it is possible to survive without it, and a few people have. There are nine known cases of cerebellar agenesis, a condition where this structure never develops. These people live life a bit differently than the rest of us and have provided a unique view of how the cerebellum works.

Most scientists, and even regular people, know the basic function of the cerebellum. It helps coordinate motion and ensures that you remain balanced and controlled in daily life. When the motor cortex in your cerebrum tells part of your body to move, the cerebellum makes sure that motion happens in the right way.

If I wanted to scratch my head with my right arm, I’d have to do it in a very specific order. From the lift of my arm to the curl of the fingers, the motion has to be organized just right to make sure I’m not scratching the air or slapping myself in the face. That’s what the cerebellum…

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Luke Hollomon, M.S., DPT
Know Your Body

A science communicator and physical therapist with a master’s degree in physiology and a background in science education. I write about life science and health.