Neuroplasticity

• Boy x who had his entire left hemisphere removed at 36 months
• Boy x language skills recovered after 2 years, suggesting the right hemisphere adapted to take over this function.
• Wall (1977) Unused neural pathways
• Brain contains many dormant neural connections
• When healthy neural connections are damaged previously dormant synapses activate and form new connections to replace damaged ones
• Axon damage can breaks connections to neighbouring neurons
• Intact neighbouring neurons can grow extra nerve endings to reconnect with these damaged neurons
• Maguire et al (2000) Taxi drivers
• London taxi drivers have a higher volume of grey matter in the posterior hippocampus
• Neuroplasticity and the ability of the brain to recover function after damage differs depending on several factors
• Danelli et al (2013) EB