Learning to deal with life's ups and downs

摘要

A study shows that circadian glucocorticoid oscillations have dual roles in dendritic spine plasticity, controlling spine formation and elimination through distinct mechanisms important for motor learning. Chronic stress exposure and excessive glucocorticoid activation are known to cause deficits in learning accompanied by dendritic spine loss in the cortex and hippocampus, as well as changes in glutamate neurotransmission. But glucocorticoids function more broadly to control learning, with moderate transient elevations enhancing plasticity and performance.