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Long-term Potentiation

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre- and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.
Hebbian LTP
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Long-term Depression

Long-term Depression

Long-term depression, or LTD, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTD is the process of synaptic weakening that occurs over time between pre and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic weakening of LTD works in opposition to synaptic strengthening by long-term potentiation (LTP) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.
Calcium Ion Concentration Mechanism
If over time, all...

Long-term Depression

Long-term Depression

Long-term depression, or LTD, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTD is the process of synaptic weakening that occurs over time between pre and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic weakening of LTD works in opposition to synaptic strengthening by long-term potentiation (LTP) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.

Chunking and Rehearsal in Sensory Memory

Chunking and Rehearsal in Sensory Memory

Improving short-term memory can be achieved through techniques like chunking and rehearsal. Chunking involves organizing information into larger, more manageable units. This technique is particularly useful for information that exceeds the typical memory span of between five and nine items. For instance, logging into an online account with a password like "ta89vq0179gz" involves grouping letters and numbers into three chunks—ta89, vq01, and 79gz. It makes large amounts of information more...

Role of Neurotransmitters in Memory

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Neurotransmitters are integral to the brain's communication system, enabling neurons to transmit signals across synapses. This chemical exchange underpins various cognitive functions, including memory processes. The role of neurotransmitters in memory is multifaceted, influencing the encoding, consolidation, and retrieval of memories through their action on different neural circuits.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Improved Preparation and Preservation of Hippocampal Mouse Slices for a Very Stable and Reproducible Recording of Long-term Potentiation

Improved Preparation and Preservation of Hippocampal Mouse Slices for a Very Stable and Reproducible Recording of Long-term Potentiation

Published on: June 26, 2013

Memory retention and spike-timing-dependent plasticity.

Guy Billings¹, Mark C W van Rossum

¹Neuroinformatics Doctoral Training Centre, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. g.billings@ucl.ac.uk

Journal of Neurophysiology

|March 20, 2009

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Synaptic plasticity learning rules significantly impact memory retention time in neural networks. Weight-dependent rules show shorter memory retention compared to weight-independent rules, but inhibition can stabilize neural receptive fields.

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Ex Vivo Optogenetic Interrogation of Long-Range Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity from Medial Prefrontal Cortex to Lateral Entorhinal Cortex

Ex Vivo Optogenetic Interrogation of Long-Range Synaptic Transmission and Plasticity from Medial Prefrontal Cortex to Lateral Entorhinal Cortex

Published on: February 25, 2022

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Computational Neuroscience
Neural Plasticity

Background:

Neural systems require plasticity for learning but must also retain existing memories.
Spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) is a key mechanism for synaptic modification.
Understanding memory retention is crucial for modeling brain function.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how different learning rules affect memory retention time in single neuron and network models.
To examine the role of synaptic weight dependence in memory persistence.
To explore how neural network architecture, specifically lateral inhibition, influences receptive field stability.

Main Methods:

Simulations of single neuron models with varying spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) learning rules.
Analysis of memory retention duration based on synaptic weight dependence.
Modeling of neural networks to assess receptive field stability under different plasticity rules.
Investigating the impact of varying levels of lateral inhibition on network dynamics.

Main Results:

Single neuron models with soft-bound, weight-dependent learning rules exhibit significantly shorter memory retention times compared to weight-independent rules.
Neural networks employing weight-dependent learning rules show less stable receptive fields.
Sufficient lateral inhibition in networks can stabilize receptive fields, even with weight-dependent plasticity.

Conclusions:

The choice of learning rule critically determines memory retention in neural models.
Weight-dependent plasticity can lead to rapid memory decay.
Lateral inhibition plays a crucial role in regulating neural plasticity and stabilizing network representations, suggesting a novel functional role for inhibition.