neuroplasticity
Neuroplasticity, or brain plasticity, is the ability of the nervous system to change its structure and function in response to learning, experience, development, injury, or disease. This capacity exists throughout life, though the extent and nature of change vary by age and context. Plastic changes can be structural, involving growth or pruning of dendrites, axons, and synapses, or functional, involving shifts in the activity or mapping of neural circuits. Mechanisms include synaptic plasticity, such as long-term potentiation and long-term depression, synaptogenesis, dendritic remodeling, changes in white-matter connectivity, and the unmasking of latent synapses.
Plasticity can be functional, with brain regions taking over functions after injury or changing representations through
Factors influencing plasticity include age, sleep, nutrition, genetics, hormones, and the intensity, repetition, and timing of
Applications of plasticity research include rehabilitation strategies such as constraint-induced movement therapy, targeted neurostimulation techniques, and
Limitations of the concept include variability across individuals and brain regions, and the challenge of proving