Author: Knut Holthoff

Source: Current Neurovascular Research, Volume 1, Number 4, October 2004 , pp. 381-387(7)

Publisher: Bentham Science Publishers

Abstract:

During the last decade, our vision of the neuronal dendritic tree has changed from a simple input device conducting afferent input as a passive cable to the cell soma to a series of independent and actively operating processing units. Different voltage- and ligand-gated ion channels located in the dendritic tree not only participate in processing afferent inputs but also enable the dendritic tree to initiate regenerative spikes, traditionally considered to be exclusively restricted to axonal structures. Recent results suggest that these local dendritic spikes may act as a means to initiate longterm synaptic plasticity. Different from Hebbian synaptic plasticity this type of induction does not need axonal action potential firing and backpropagation into the dendrite. This new proximity learning rule, first postulated by neural network theorists, may have large significance for the information processing in the brain.

Keywords: dendritic spike; synaptic plasticity; long term depression; long term potentiation; learning rule

Document Type: Review article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1567202043362144

Affiliations: 1: Ludwig Maximilians Universität, Institut für Zellphysiologie, Pettenkoferstr. 12, 80336 München, Germany.

Publication date: 2004-10-01

More about this publication?

• Current Neurovascular Research (CNR) provides a cross platform for the publication of scientifically rigorous research that addresses disease mechanisms of both neuronal and vascular origins in neuroscience. The journal serves as an international forum for the publication of novel and pioneering original work as well as timely neuroscience research reviews in the disciplines of cell developmental disorders, plasticity, and degeneration that bridge the gap between basic science research and clinical discovery. CNR emphasizes the elucidation of disease mechanisms, both cellular and molecular, which can impact the development of unique therapeutic strategies for neuronal and vascular disorders.

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