Lesson 8 - Plasticity and Recovery Flashcards
1
Q
Brain Plasticity
A
- Refers to brain’s ability to change and adapt as a result of experience
- Plasticity allows the brain to cope better with the indirect effects of brain damage
2
Q
Indirect Effects of Brain Damage
A
Swelling or haemorrhage following a road accident, or damage resulting from inadequate blood supply following a stroke
3
Q
Plasticity - Life Experience
A
- Nerve pathways that are used frequently develop stronger connections, those rarely used eventually die
- By developing new connections and reducing weak ones - the brain is able to adapt to a changing environment
- However, there is also a decline in cognitive functioning with age attributed to these changes
- Boyke et al 2008 - taught 60 year olds a new skill (juggling)
- Increased the grey matter in the visual cortex
4
Q
Plasticity - Video Games
A
- Kuhn et al 2014 - Compared a control group to a group who had been given video game training for at least 30 minutes a day for 2 months on the game Super Mario
- They found that playing video games caused a significant increase in grey matter in t he visual cortex, hippocampus, and cerebellum
- Playing video games results in new synaptic connections in brain areas involved in spatial navigation, strategic planning, working memory and motor performance
5
Q
Plasticity - Meditation
A
- Davidson et al 2004 - Compared 8 Tibetan monks with ten students who had no previous meditation experiences
- EEG scan picked up greater gamma wave activity in the monks, even before they started meditating
- Gamma waves coordinate neural activity
6
Q
Kempermann et al 1998 - Rats AO3
A
- Found far more new neurons in the brains of rats in complex environments that those housed in basic cages
- Increase in neurons was most prominent in the hippocampus
- Which is involved in the forming of new long-term memories and the ability to navigate
7
Q
Maguire et al 2000 Taxi Drivers AO3
A
- Measured grey matter in the brains of London taxi drivers using an MRI scan
- Hippocampus in taxi drivers was significantly larger than a control group
- Positively correlated with the amount of time they had spent as a taxi driver
8
Q
Functional Recovery
A
- Form of plasticity
- Following damage caused by trauma, the brain can redistribute or transfer functions usually performed by the damaged areas to other undamaged areas
- When the brain is still maturing, recovery from trauma is more likely
- Brain is still capable of plasticity and functional recovery at any age
- Studies have suggested that women recover from a brain injury quicker than men do
9
Q
Methods of Recovery
A
- Transfer of functions from damaged areas of the brain to undamaged ones can occur, this is called neural reorganisation
- Growth of new neurons and/or connections (axons and dendrites) to compensate for damaged areas can also occur, this is called neural regeneration
- Axon sprouting is part of neural regeneration, new nerve endings grow and connect with other undamaged nerve cells to form new neural pathways.
10
Q
Spontaneous Recovery
A
- Slows down after a number of weeks
- Physiotherapy may be required to maintain improvements in functioning
- Techniques can include movement therapy and electrical stimulation of the brain to counter deficits in motor and cognitive functioning that can be experienced following a stroke
11
Q
Phantom Limb Syndrome
A
- Can be used as evidence of neural reorganisation
- PLS is the continued experience of sensation in a missing limb as if it were still there
- These sensations are often unpleasant and even painful
- PLS is thought to be caused by neural reorganisation in the somatosensory cortex that occurs as a result of limb loss
12
Q
Hubel and Torten Wisel 1963
A
- Sewed one eye of a kitten shut and analysed the brain’s cortical response
- Found that the visual cortex for the shut eye was not idle - continued to process information from the open eye
- Further evidence that brain areas can reorganise themselves and adapt their functions
