long-term potentiation

Examples of long-term potentiation in the following topics:

• Habituation, Sensitization, and Potentiation

  • Potentiation, habituation, and sensitization are three ways in which stimuli in the environment produce changes in the nervous system.
  • Three ways in which this occurs include long-term potentiation, habituation, and sensitization.
  • One way that the nervous system changes is through potentiation, or the strengthening of the nerve synapses (the gaps between neurons).
  • Long-term potentiation (LTP) is the persistent strengthening of synapses based on recent patterns of activity: it occurs when a neuron shows an increased excitability over time due to a repeated pattern, behavior, or response.
  • The opposite of LTP is long-term depression (LTD), which produces a long-lasting decrease in synaptic strength.

• Other Steps

  • Encoding allows an item of interest or purpose to be converted into a usable construct that is stored within the brain; it is later recalled from long-term memory.
  • The hippocampus then analyzes the sensations and decides if they are worth committing to long-term memory.
  • Dendrites, which are extensions of neurons, receive the impulse and allow the synapse to increase in strength; this is known as long-term potentiation.
  • Long-term potentiation initiates NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) receptors, which in turn influence the flow of information between neurons.
  • Studies have shown that the long-term retention of information is greatly improved through the use of elaborative encoding.

• Introduction to Memory Encoding

  • Once it is encoded, it can be recalled from either short- or long-term memory.
  • The hippocampus then analyzes this experience and decides if it is worth committing to long-term memory.
  • Neural pathways, or connections between neurons (brain cells), are actually formed or strengthened through a process called long-term potentiation, which alters the flow of information within the brain.
  • This type of information is temporarily stored in iconic memory, and then is moved to long-term memory for storage.
  • Studies have shown that the long-term retention of information is greatly improved through the use of elaborative encoding.

• Stages of the Action Potential

  • In order for a neuron to move from resting potential to action potential—a short-term electrical change that allows an electrical signal to be passed from one neuron to another—the neuron must be stimulated by pressure, electricity, chemicals, or another form of stimuli.
  • Therefore, the neuron cannot reach action potential during this "rest period."
  • In other words, larger currents do not create larger action potentials.
  • The frequency of action potentials is correlated with the intensity of a stimulus.
  • Reuptake is necessary for normal synaptic physiology because it allows for the recycling of neurotransmitters and regulates the neurotransmitter level in the synapse, thereby controlling how long a signal resulting from neurotransmitter release lasts.

• Substance Abuse and Health

  • Some people turn to substances to self-medicate for disorders like depression, anxiety, or bipolar disorder, only to find that substance use, while diminishing psychological distress in the short-term, only exacerbates the symptoms in the long run. 
  • In addition to adversely altering the mental health of users, substance abuse can have a significant and long-lasting impact on the body.
  • In the long term, users may suffer from dental and gum deterioration, sleep disorders, a variety of respiratory problems, and damage to the brain, kidneys, and liver.
  • This chart compares the relative danger of particular substances based on the dependence level developed and the potential physical harm to the user and others.
  • Heroin, with an extremely high dependence and high potential for physical harm, is an extremely dangerous substance.

• Mechanics of the Action Potential

  • Resting potential.
  • If the membrane potential reaches -55 mV, it has reached the threshold of excitation.
  • Eventually, the cell potential reaches +40 mV, or the action potential.
  • This expulsion acts to restore the localized negative membrane potential of the cell.
  • Long-term changes can be seen in electrical synapses.

• Short-Term and Working Memory

  • It is separate from our long-term memory, where lots of information is stored for us to recall at a later time.
  • It also links the working memory to the long-term memory, controls the storage of long-term memory, and manages memory retrieval from storage.
  • The process of transferring information from short-term to long-term memory involves encoding and consolidation of information.
  • This is a function of time; that is, the longer the memory stays in the short-term memory the more likely it is to be placed in the long-term memory.
  • In this process, the meaningfulness or emotional content of an item may play a greater role in its retention in the long-term memory.

• Neural Networks

  • If a stimulus creates a strong enough input signal in a nerve cell, the neuron sends an action potential and transmits this signal along its axon.
  • The axon of a nerve cell is responsible for transmitting information over a relatively long distance, and so most neural pathways are made up of axons.
  • Some neurons are responsible for conveying information over long distances.
  • Neurons were found to be capable of producing regular sequences of action potentials ("firing") even in complete isolation.
  • A modern conception views the function of the nervous system partly in terms of stimulus-response chains, and partly in terms of intrinsically generated activity patterns; both types of activity interact with each other to generate the full repertoire of behavior.

• Introduction to Memory Storage

  • The way long-term memories are stored is similar to a digital compression.
  • Items stored in short-term memory move to long-term memory through rehearsal, processing, and use.
  • The capacity of long-term memory storage is much greater than that of short-term memory, and perhaps unlimited.
  • Note that all models use the terminology of short-term and long-term memory to explain memory storage.
  • Two types of memory storage, short-term store and long-term store, are utilized in the SAM model.

• Personality Psychology

  • Personality psychology studies the long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways.
  • Personality refers to the long-standing traits and patterns that propel individuals to consistently think, feel, and behave in specific ways.
  • Each person has an idiosyncratic pattern of enduring, long-term characteristics, and a manner in which they interact with other individuals and the world around them.
  • Our personalities are thought to be long-term, stable, and not easily changed.
  • Humanistic psychologists Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers focused on the growth potential of healthy individuals.