Homeostatic plasticity
Encyclopedia
In Neuroscience
, homeostatic plasticity refers to the capacity of neurons to regulate their own excitability relative to network activity, a compensatory adjustment that occurs over the timescale of days.
Homeostatic plasticity is thought to balance Hebbian plasticity by modulating the activity of the synapse
or the properties of ion channels. Homeostatic plasticity in neocortical circuits has been studied in depth by Gina Turrigiano and Sacha Nelson (Brandeis University
), who first showed in their paper in the journal Nature in 1998 describing a compensatory changes in excitatory post-synaptic currents (mEPSCs) after chronic activity manipulations, (there have been reports of related phenomena circa. 1992). The exact mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are under active investigation.
The term homeostatic plasticity derives from two opposing concepts: ‘homeostatic’ (a product of the Greek words for ‘same’ and ‘state’ or ‘condition’) and plasticity (or 'change'), thus homeostatic plasticity means "staying the same through change."
Neuroscience
Neuroscience is the scientific study of the nervous system. Traditionally, neuroscience has been seen as a branch of biology. However, it is currently an interdisciplinary science that collaborates with other fields such as chemistry, computer science, engineering, linguistics, mathematics,...
, homeostatic plasticity refers to the capacity of neurons to regulate their own excitability relative to network activity, a compensatory adjustment that occurs over the timescale of days.
Homeostatic plasticity is thought to balance Hebbian plasticity by modulating the activity of the synapse
Synapse
In the nervous system, a synapse is a structure that permits a neuron to pass an electrical or chemical signal to another cell...
or the properties of ion channels. Homeostatic plasticity in neocortical circuits has been studied in depth by Gina Turrigiano and Sacha Nelson (Brandeis University
Brandeis University
Brandeis University is an American private research university with a liberal arts focus. It is located in the southwestern corner of Waltham, Massachusetts, nine miles west of Boston. The University has an enrollment of approximately 3,200 undergraduate and 2,100 graduate students. In 2011, it...
), who first showed in their paper in the journal Nature in 1998 describing a compensatory changes in excitatory post-synaptic currents (mEPSCs) after chronic activity manipulations, (there have been reports of related phenomena circa. 1992). The exact mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are under active investigation.
The term homeostatic plasticity derives from two opposing concepts: ‘homeostatic’ (a product of the Greek words for ‘same’ and ‘state’ or ‘condition’) and plasticity (or 'change'), thus homeostatic plasticity means "staying the same through change."