This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via ISI Web of Science (5) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Bruel-Jungerman, E. Articles by Laroche, S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Bruel-Jungerman, E. Articles by Laroche, S. Social Bookmarking                   What's this?

Brain Plasticity Mechanisms and Memory: A Party of Four

Laboratoire de Neurobiologie de l'Apprentissage, de la Mémoire et de la Communication, CNRS, Univ Paris-Sud, Orsay, France

Sabrina Davis

Laboratoire de Neurobiologie de l'Apprentissage, de la Mémoire et de la Communication, CNRS, Univ Paris-Sud, Orsay, France

Serge Laroche

Laboratoire de Neurobiologie de l'Apprentissage, de la Mémoire et de la Communication, CNRS, Univ Paris-Sud, Orsay, France, serge.laroche{at}u-psud.fr

A defining characteristic of the brain is its remarkable capacity to undergo activity-dependent functional and morphological remodeling via mechanisms of plasticity that form the basis of our capacity to encode and retain memories. Today, it is generally accepted that the neurobiological substrate of memories resides in activity-driven modifications of synaptic strength and structural remodeling of neural networks activated during learning. Since the discovery of long-term potentiation, the role of synaptic strengthening in learning and memory has been the subject of considerable investigation, and numerous studies have provided new insights into how this form of plasticity can subserve memory function. At the same time, other studies have explored the contribution of synaptic elimination or weakening; synaptogenesis, the growth of new synaptic connections and synapse remodeling; and more recently, neurogenesis, the birth and growth of new neurons in the adult brain. In this review, based on work in the hippocampus, the authors briefly outline recent advances in their understanding of the mechanisms and functional role of these four types of brain plasticity in the context of learning and memory. While they have long been considered as alternative mechanisms of plasticity underlying the storage of long-term memories, recent evidence suggests that they are functionally linked, suggesting the mechanisms underlying plasticity in the brain required for the formation and retention of memories are multifaceted. NEUROSCIENTIST 13(5):492—505, 2007. DOI: 10.1177/1073858407302725

Key Words: Memory • Synaptic plasticity • Long-term potentiation • Long-term depression • Synaptogenesis • Neurogenesis • Hippocampus

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				G. Barriere, M. Tartas, J.-R. Cazalets, and S. S. Bertrand Interplay between neuromodulator-induced switching of short-term plasticity at sensorimotor synapses in the neonatal rat spinal cord J. Physiol., April 1, 2008; 586(7): 1903 - 1920. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]