Mice Transmit Acquired Adaptability to their Offspring (IMAGE)

University of Göttingen

Mice Transmit Acquired Adaptability to their Offspring

Caption

Evidence is accumulating that life experiences of the parent can be transmitted across generations. Imaging of neuronal activity shows that -- after several days of monocular vision (black dot) -- the mouse primary visual cortex (V1) is more 'plastic' (ie adaptable) in mice whose parents experienced a stimulating environment (bottom row), compared with mice whose parents experienced a standard cage (top row). Thus the environment experienced by parents can strongly affect brain plasticity (ie adaptability) of the offspring. Abbreviations: OD = ocular dominance.

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Siegrid Löwel

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