Neuroplasticity: The Continuum of Change
Hooker, J. M., Olson, D. E., Wallace, R. M.
This viewpoint (2023) explores the concept of neuroplasticity, which is increasingly used in mainstream discourse to describe how the brain responds to various stimuli. Neuroplasticity is a complex concept encompassing molecular, cellular, and circuit-level changes and their impact on human behaviour. The article aims to comprehensively understand neuroplasticity by engaging experts from various scientific disciplines. It emphasizes its relevance in healthy and diseased conditions, highlighting its importance in chemical neuroscience.
Abstract
Neuroplasticity is a term that is increasingly permeating mainstream discourse and being used by the popular press to simplify descriptions of how the brain changes in response to stimuli such as exercise, sleep, food, drugs of abuse, and medicines, among others. However, it is a complex, multifaceted concept representing a continuum connecting molecular, cellular, and circuit-level changes and their effects on human behavior. In this Viewpoint, we examine neuroplasticity from several perspectives to construct a holistic view of this ambiguous term. By engaging experts across various scientific disciplines, we attempt to provide an easy entry point to the concept of neuroplasticity for readers of ACS Chemical Neuroscience. By highlighting how neuroplasticity changes in both health and disease, we demonstrate that the concept is applicable to both adaptive and maladaptive responses to stimuli, underscoring its significance in chemical neuroscience.