Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 11, 2025

Author Spotlight: Optimizing Dendritic Spine Analysis for Balanced Manual and Automated Assessment in the Hippocampus CA1 Apical Dendrites
Published on: September 27, 2024
Dendritic Spines: Mediators of Cognitive Resilience in Aging and Alzheimer's Disease
Courtney K Walker1, Jeremy H Herskowitz1
1Department of Neurology, Center for Neurodegeneration and Experimental Therapeutics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
Abstract:
Cognitive resilience is often defined as the ability to remain cognitively normal in the face of insults to the brain. These insults can include disease pathology, such as plaques and tangles associated with Alzheimer's disease, stroke, traumatic brain injury, or other lesions. Factors such as physical or mental activity and genetics may contribute to cognitive resilience, but the neurobiological underpinnings remain ill-defined. Emerging evidence suggests that dendritic spine structural plasticity is one plausible mechanism. In this review, we highlight the basic structure and function of dendritic spines and discuss how spine density and morphology change in aging and Alzheimer's disease. We note evidence that spine plasticity mediates resilience to stress, and we tackle dendritic spines in the context of cognitive resilience to Alzheimer's disease. Finally, we examine how lifestyle and genetic factors may influence dendritic spine plasticity to promote cognitive resilience before discussing evidence for actin regulatory kinases as therapeutic targets for Alzheimer's disease.
Related Concept Videos
Alzheimer's Disease: Overview
The clinical diagnosis of AD hinges on the presence of memory and other cognitive impairments. Biomarkers, such as changes in Aβ...
Role of Neurotransmitters in Memory
Glutamate and Synaptic Plasticity
Glutamate, the brain's main excitatory neurotransmitter, is...
Long-term Depression
Calcium Ion Concentration Mechanism
If over...
Long-term Depression
Cognitive Development During Adulthood
Alzheimer's Disease: Treatment

