Cortical Plasticity Induced by Inhibitory Neuron Transplantation

Abstract

Inflexible Timing for Flexibility During critical periods in early life, sensory experience molds circuits in the brain. In the visual cortex, blurring or occluding vision in one eye triggers a rapid reorganization of neuronal responses known as ocular dominance plasticity. The critical period for this plasticity depends on inhibitory neurotransmission. Southwell et al. (p. 1145 ) show that by transplanting embryonic precursors of inhibitory neurons into mice, a period of ocular dominance plasticity can be induced after the end of the normal critical period. These observations suggest that transplantation of inhibitory neurons has therapeutic potential for brain repair and for treating neurological disorders and inducing periods of brain plasticity.