Evaluations Plasticity/FR

• S of plasticity - research support from animal studies. Kempermann et al investigated whether an enriched environment can alter the number of neurons in the brain. They found evidence of an increased number of new neurons in the brains of rats housed in complex environments compared to rats housed in lab cages. The rats housed in complex environments showed an increase in neurons in the hippocampus, a part of the brain associated with the formation of new memories...
• (S of plasticity - animal studies) ...Shows that being exposed to complex experiences builds neural pathways and stronger connections between active neurons. This supports the idea that the brain does have plasticity and can change with experience, thus validation our understanding of the mechanisms of plasticity
• Evaluation points for plasticity and functional recovery:

  • S - research support for plasticity from animal research
  • S - case study support for function recovery
  • S - research support for functional recovery from animal research
  • W - understanding of functional recovery is incomplete
• S - functional recovery - case study support. Danelli et al studied a 14 year old patient, EB, who was born with a tumour in their brain. At 2 years old, they had a left hemispherectomy which removed important areas like broca's area and wernicke's area - the language centres. EB lost nearly all their language capabilities after. But after 2 years they regained nearly full use of their language, although it was still more taxing for them mentally. Researchers found ...
• (S-functional recover - case study - Danelli et al - EB)... Researchers found in the MRI images of EB's brain is that the right hemisphere had adapted and changed structurally to the point of matching a similar structure that language centres lost in the left hemisphere would've had. S bc it shows that the brain reorganises after damage and loss of function. Other parts of the brain change structurally and take on the lost function, thus allowing for significant but now always complete recovery of functioning. Increases validity
• S - functional recovery - evidence from animal studies. Hubel + Weisel sewn a cat's eye shut to analyse its brain's cortical responses. Found the area of the visual cortex that processes info from the shut eye wasn't inactive but continued to process info from the open eye. While the VC linked to the sewn eye should've stayed inactive in absence of sensory stimulation, it instead went through neural rewiring to take on the function of another part of the body (the intact eye). Plausible that when parts of the brain are damaged, the same mechanisms take place to recover function. Increases V
• W - FR - understanding is incomplete. Schneider et al compared the level of functional recovery of patients 23 or older after traumatic brain injury by measuring he likelihood of 'disability free recovery' up to 1 yr after the injury. Found 39.2% of those with more than 16 yrs of education achieved DFR within a yr - only 9.7% of patients with less than 12 yrs of education achieved DFR. Shows that level of educational attainment and an individual's cog reserve can be an important factor in influencing the extent of FR after a traumatic brain injury. W bc...
• (W - FR - understanding is incomplete)... S bc it shows that FR is not purely a bio process. Need to take into account environmental influences to gain a complete understanding of how the brain adapts after damage and loss of function. Therefore since FR doesn't take exp into account it can be considered incomplete. Decreases V