![]() ![]() There is a wide spectrum of learning protocols which were employed so far to understand neuroplasticity. To effectively answer these questions, we first need to elicit a novel behavior. Generally, in studies on neuroplasticity, two questions arise: what are the structural and functional changes related to a particular behavioral need, and how do they occur over time. Musical Training as a Framework for Studying Brain Plasticity From a social perspective, neuroplasticity processes underlie such phenomena as education, neurological rehabilitation, or healthy aging. Neuroplastic changes occur in response to internal and external stimuli throughout the entire lifetime ( Draganski and May, 2008). We currently understand that the human brain is not shaped exclusively during critical periods of development. Although usually measured separately, functional and structural neuroplasticity reflect various aspects of the same neuroplastic processes and are thus inherently intertwined in a complex manner. In human neuroimaging studies, it is possible to indirectly measure macroscopic effects of the neuroplastic biological dynamics via functional and structural modalities (for the overview of the relationship between macroscopic measures and the underlying biology, see Tardif et al., 2016). These processes include, among others, dynamic reconfiguration of neural connections, cell shape, size, myelination, synaptic strength and neurogenesis, the last one limited to the olfactory bulb and the hippocampus in adults ( Tardif et al., 2016). The brain, as the source of behavior, adapts its architecture and functions to perform new tasks through processes broadly defined as neuroplasticity. The constantly changing environment, the drive for new knowledge and skills, all require behavioral flexibility. Introduction: What is Neuroplasticity? Why is it so Important to Study it? ![]() We show that “the musical brain” is a product of both the natural human neurodiversity and the training practice. In addition, potential predictors of musical learning success were found including increased brain activation in the auditory and motor systems during listening, the microstructure of the arcuate fasciculus, and the functional connectivity between the auditory and the motor systems. ![]() Parallel changes within the motor system and between the motor and auditory systems were revealed for structural connectivity. A few longitudinal studies showed functional changes related to training while listening to and producing music, in the motor network and its connectivity with the auditory system, in line with the outcomes of cross-sectional studies. Cross-sectional studies identified structural and functional differences between the brains of musicians and non-musicians, especially in regions related to motor control and auditory processing. Here we present a review of recent publications with strong focus on experimental designs to better understand both brain reorganization and the neuronal markers of predispositions when learning to play a musical instrument. However, the classical nature-or-nurture question remains, whether the differences observed between musicians and non-musicians are due to predispositions or result from the training itself. Therefore, musical training is considered a useful framework for the research on training-induced neuroplasticity. Learning to play a musical instrument is a complex task that integrates multiple sensory modalities and higher-order cognitive functions. 2Laboratory of Language Neurobiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.1Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland.Herman 1 Katarzyna Jednoróg 2 Artur Marchewka 1* ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |