Development and Plasticity Flashcards
Formation of which nervous system occurs during prenatal development?
Central nervous system
What are the 3 steps of the development of the brain and what do they mean?
- Cell division: generating neurons and multiplying
- Cell migration: cell migrates to where it belongs in the body and continues to multiply
- Cell differentiation: new cells take on the characteristics of either a neuron or glial cell
What does plasticity mean?
It refers to the ability of the nervous system to change
At birth, what do the inputs from the LGN look like?
They are intermingled in the striate cortex (V1), but eventually segregate in ocular dominance columns
What is the fine-tuning of the wiring of the brain driven by?
Sensory experience
What happens when you activate the visual cortex via TMS in people with severe visual impairment?
It only causes phosphenes for those that weren’t congenitally blind
Is production of mental images associated with activation of visual cortex in both congenitally blind and sighted participants?
Yep, even if the task only involves verbal instructions
What does functional plasticity mean?
Enlargement of cortical regions in which certain abilities are trained (more neurons respond after training, leading to improved performance)
True or false: training can induce relatively rapid changes in brain activity
True! This reflects the plastic ability of the nervous system to acquire and retain new info and skills
At approximately what age does the brain begin to atrophy?
Roughly 65+ years old
What is one of the consequences of the atrophy of the brain as we age?
A decline in memory function due to reduced hippocampus size
What activity can not only stop atrophy of the hippocampus, but actually increase its size?
Aerobic exercise
What is aerobic exercise?
Exercise where you’re breathing heavily and sweat
