The word «plastic» has a Greek origin (πλαστικός) meaning something that is capable of being shaped and/or molten. Similarly, due to its vast neuronal circuitry the human brain can be shaped by the environment and cognitive experience[38]. Brain plasticity (or neuroplasticity) describes lasting change to the brain throughout an animal's life course. For example, as it is described in the previous section, during fetal development the brain changes continuously, considering maturation of the cells and creation of the cortex and all the brain parts that support life as we know it. Neuroplastic change can also occur in adult life at small scales, such as physical changes to individual neurons, or at whole-brain scales, such as cortical remapping
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In contrast, there are no obvious changes in sensory cortex after four days but clear, and seemingly permanent, changes after 14 days [42, 43]. All the aforementioned examples as well as adult neurogenesis fell in the category of brain plasticity. Some of the known factors that can significantly affect brain plasticity are a) sensory and motor experience b)psychoactive drugs c)gonadal hormones d)parent-child relationships e)peer relationship f)stress g)intestinal flora h)diet and i) diseases [43]. In the case of diseases like neurodegenerative diseases and disorders like obsession, depression, compulsion and psychosocial stress; research suggests that their pathology is associated with the loss of plasticity [44]. A common characteristic of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) is the neurofibrillary and synaptic degeneration that initiates the pathological deregulation of the brain’s chemo-electrical signaling and disruption of healthy neurotransmission. This toxic environment can cause irreversible neurodegeneration that inevitably results in dementia [45, …show more content…
The neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) are characterized by progressive dysfunction and death of neurons without overt neurogenesis or gain of lost function. The neurodegenerative diseases can be grouped into two categories: movement disorders and dementia syndromes. There is a considerable overlap in the clinical and pathological features of these diseases. For example, Lewy body pathology can cause Parkinson’s disease, dementia, autonomic failure, focal dystonia, or isolated dysphagia. The incident of neurodegenerative diseases is increasing with age. This is related to an age-related decline in the efficiency of brain plasticity and certain metabolic pathways and cumulative damage resulting from lifetime exposure to potentially deleterious environments (some of them are listed above). In the current we focus more in NDs that are related to dementia syndromes and more precisely to Alzheimer’s disease
In contrast, there are no obvious changes in sensory cortex after four days but clear, and seemingly permanent, changes after 14 days [42, 43]. All the aforementioned examples as well as adult neurogenesis fell in the category of brain plasticity. Some of the known factors that can significantly affect brain plasticity are a) sensory and motor experience b)psychoactive drugs c)gonadal hormones d)parent-child relationships e)peer relationship f)stress g)intestinal flora h)diet and i) diseases [43]. In the case of diseases like neurodegenerative diseases and disorders like obsession, depression, compulsion and psychosocial stress; research suggests that their pathology is associated with the loss of plasticity [44]. A common characteristic of neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) is the neurofibrillary and synaptic degeneration that initiates the pathological deregulation of the brain’s chemo-electrical signaling and disruption of healthy neurotransmission. This toxic environment can cause irreversible neurodegeneration that inevitably results in dementia [45, …show more content…
The neurodegenerative diseases (NDs) are characterized by progressive dysfunction and death of neurons without overt neurogenesis or gain of lost function. The neurodegenerative diseases can be grouped into two categories: movement disorders and dementia syndromes. There is a considerable overlap in the clinical and pathological features of these diseases. For example, Lewy body pathology can cause Parkinson’s disease, dementia, autonomic failure, focal dystonia, or isolated dysphagia. The incident of neurodegenerative diseases is increasing with age. This is related to an age-related decline in the efficiency of brain plasticity and certain metabolic pathways and cumulative damage resulting from lifetime exposure to potentially deleterious environments (some of them are listed above). In the current we focus more in NDs that are related to dementia syndromes and more precisely to Alzheimer’s disease