Mechanisms and Sequential Progression of Plasticity
Recent evidence indicates that experience can alter the regional grey matter volume of the adult human brain. The dynamics, mechanisms, and biological nature of such structural brain changes are currently unknown. In this project, which follows up on activities of the Sofja Kovalevskaja Research Group on the Plasticity of Brain and Behavior in Adulthood and Old Age, we will conduct training experiments with a large number of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans within research participants to address these issues.
In a first study (Dissertation Elisabeth Wenger), the short-term and long-term effects of motor learning on brain structure and function will be traced over time. To this end, research participants will train their fine-motor skills of their non-dominant hand over a period of two months. MR images will be acquired at multiple occasions across the stages of learning. This will allow the tracking of the sequential progression of structural brain changes, and to relate these changes to skill acquisition and changes in functional brain activity.
In a second study, we examine brain-structural, functional, and behavioral changes eleicited by playing a commercial video game during which participants navigate and orient themselves in a 3D-world.
Plasticity
Team
Simone Kühn
Martin Lövdén
Ulman Lindenberger
Julius Verrel
Hannes Noack
Elisabeth Wenger (predoctoral fellows)
Key References
Kühn, S., Schmiedek, F., Noack, H., Wenger, E., Bodammer, N.C., Lindenberger, U., & Lövden, M. (2012). The dynamics of change in striatal activity following updating training. Human Brain Mapping. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1002/hbm.22007
Kühn, S., Schmiedek, F., Schott, B., Ratcliff, R., Heinze, H.-J., Düzel, E., Lindenberger, U., & Lövden, M. (2011). Brain areas consistently linked to individual differences in perceptual decision-making in younger as well as older adults before and after training. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 23, 2147–2158. doi: 10.1162/jocn.2010.21564
Lövdén, M., Bäckman, L., Lindenberger, U., Schaefer, S., & Schmiedek, F. (2010). A theoretical framework for the study of adult cognitive plasticity. Psychological Bulletin, 136, 659–676. doi: 10.1037/a0020080
Lövdén, M., Bodammer, N. C., Kühn, S., Kaufmann, J., Schütze, H., Tempelmann, C., et al. (2010). Experience-dependent plasticity of white-matter microstructure extends into old age. Neuropsychologia, 48, 3878–3883. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia. 2010.08.026
Lövdén, M., Schaefer, S., Noack, H., Kanowski, M., Kaufmann, J., Tempelmann, C., et al. (2011). Performance-related increases in hippocampal N-acetylaspartate (NAA) induced by spatial navigation training are restricted to BDNF Val homozygotes. Cerebral Cortex, 21, 1435–1442. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhq230
Lövdén, M., Schaefer, S., Noack, H., Bodammer, N. C., Kühn, S., Heinze, H. J., et al. (2011). Spatial navigation training protects the hippocampus against age-related changes during early and late adulthood. Neurobiology of Aging. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging. 2011.02.013