Wiring & Rewiring: Experience-Dependent Circuit Development and Plasticity in Sensory Cortices

To build an appropriate representation of the sensory stimuli around the world, neural circuits are wired according to both intrinsic factors and external sensory stimuli. Moreover, the brain circuits have the capacity to rewire in response to altered environment, both during early development and throughout life.
In this talk, I will give an overview about my past research in studying the dynamic processes underlying functional maturation and plasticity in rodent sensory cortices. I will also present data about the current and future research in my lab – that is, the synaptic and circuit mechanisms by which the mature brain circuits employ to regulate the balance between stability and plasticity. By applying chronic 2-photon calcium and close-loop visual exposure, we studied the circuit changes at single-neuron resolution to show that concurrent running with visual stimulus is required to drive neuroplasticity in the adult brain.