Exam 5: Development and Plasticity of the Brain

After learning strengthens one set of synapses, other synapses:

Denervation supersensitivity results from the disuse of incoming axons.

____ occurs as a surviving axon grows a new branch to replace the synapses left vacant by a damaged axon.

Describe the relationship of sensory representation and phantom limb sensation.

If some of the axons innervating a given cell are destroyed or if they become inactive, what compensatory process takes place in the remaining presynaptic cells?

A cortical cell originally responded to stimulation of the middle finger. After amputation of that finger it begins responding to the second and fourth fingers. What most likely accounts for this?

____ cells proliferate after a stroke.

Necrosis:

Describe how phantom limb sensations that seemingly come from a missing hand might occur when the face is touched.

Define myelination during neural development.

The most likely explanation for the excess proliferation of neurons in early development is that it:

The formation of new synapses is called:

After cells have differentiated as neurons or glia, they:

Central nervous system axons regenerate much better in fish than in mammals because:

Which axons will regenerate to a significant degree if cut or crushed?

Damage due to stroke caused by ischemia can be minimized by administering a drug that:

Synaptogenesis is a process that begins before birth and continues throughout life.

Modern methods have demonstrated that phantom limbs develop only if the relevant portion of the ____ reorganizes and becomes responsive to alternative inputs.

What brain abnormalities are found in children with fetal alcohol syndrome?

The number of neurons in the brain is continually increasing throughout life.