9- Plasticity in Specific Brain Regions

Question 1

How can the motor cortex be mapped?

Answer 1

By TMS

Question 2

What is the consequence of the TMS coil being over the motor cortex?

Answer 2

Triggers muscle activity

Question 3

What does moving the TMS coil around across the motor cortex cause?

Answer 3

Activation of different muscles

Question 4

What can TMS on the motor cortex generate?

Answer 4

A map of someone’s motor cortex

Question 5

What suggests plasticity based on personal use?

Answer 5

Individual differences in body representation in the somatosensory and motor system

Question 6

What studies tell us about plasticity?

Answer 6

Studying sensory disruption

Question 7

When can sensorimotor areas reorganise?

Answer 7

If the input is changed

Question 8

What does studying finger representations in congenital syndactyly show?

Answer 8

Motor cortex adapts itself based on the inputs coming in

Question 9

How was use-dependent plasticity studied?

Answer 9

Seeing if playing a musical instrument changes the motor cortex

Question 10

What did tactile stimulations of digits of left hand cause in musicians when ‘use-dependent plasticity’ was investigated?

Answer 10

Brain activity was shifted and greater strength of response

Question 11

What was there correlation between when investigating use-dependent plasticity and what was this evidence of?

Answer 11

Correlation between experience and size of change, evidence for expansion of cortex

Question 12

What does the auditory cortex contain?

Answer 12

Graded representation of sound frequencies

Question 13

How is the auditory cortex different in the blind sighted?

Answer 13

Enlarged

Question 14

What did blind participants show when having to localise a sound source at peripheral locations?

Answer 14

Better detection performance

Question 15

What is activated in a blind person during Braille reading by touch?

Answer 15

Visual cortex

Question 16

How does Braille reading activating the visual cortex suggest a change in function in blind people?

Answer 16

Visual cortex is being used for reading

Question 17

How is TMS used to demonstrate cross-modal plasticity?

Answer 17

To disrupt visual cortex function

Question 18

What does disruption of the visual cortex cause in blind individuals?

Answer 18

Braille reading errors and distorts touch perceptions

Question 19

What is the effect of disrupting the visual cortex in controls?

Answer 19

No effect

Question 20

How can the motor cortex reorganise?

Answer 20

To support motor skills

Question 21

What is shown by studies in blind individuals?

Answer 21

Plasticity in other brain regions

Question 22

What expansion is shown by studies of blind individuals?

Answer 22

Expansion of the auditory cortex

Question 23

What does plasticity lead to?

Answer 23

Better performance

Question 24

What can provide useful insights into plasticity mechanisms?

Answer 24

Motor learning

Question 25

How does motor learning and motor cortex reorganisation occur?

Answer 25

Rapidly

Question 26

Plasticity also occurring in the adult brain shows what?

Answer 26

Plasticity is maintained through the lifespan

Question 27

What do TMS studies show?

Answer 27

Even simple movements can cause rapid reorganisation of motor cortex

Question 28

What is an example of injury-induced plasticity?

Answer 28

Motor cortex reorganises itself after stroke damage

Question 29

What is the brain's response to practicing movements?

Answer 29

Motor cortex can rapidly reorganise itself

Question 30

What is the key mechanism in adult plasticity?

Answer 30

Long-term potentiation

Question 31

What causes brain plasticity?

Answer 31

Changes in synaptic weighting

Question 32

How does long-term potentiation cause connection between 2 neurons to become stronger?

Answer 32

A neuron repeatedly fires and excites another neuron

Question 33

What does long-term potentiation cause at the synapse?

Answer 33

Long-term strengthening of transmission

Question 34

What causes a bigger response in a second neuron?

Answer 34

Same input

Question 35

What is based on LTP?

Answer 35

Use-dependent plasticity in the motor system

Question 36

What does LTP depend on?

Answer 36

Activation of NMDA receptors

Question 37

What is the result of drugs blocking NMDA activation?

Answer 37

They prevent reorganisation of motor cortex after training

Question 38

When does plasticity occur?

Answer 38

In adulthood as well as childhood

Question 39

What is use-dependent plasticity?

Answer 39

Cortex reorganisation occurring in response to experience

Question 40

What is injury-induced plasticity?

Answer 40

Cortex reorganisation occurring in response to injury

Question 41

What is a functional consequence of plasticity?

Answer 41

Improved performance

Question 42

What is important for reorganisation?

Answer 42

Synaptic plasticity