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Cortical Development, Plasticity, and Dynamics
Plasticity, or the adaptive response of the brain to changes in inputs, is essential to brain development and function. The developing brain requires a genetic blueprint but is also acutely sensitive to the environment. The adult brain constantly adapts to changes in stimuli, and this plasticity is manifest not only as learning and memory but also as dynamic changes in information transmission and processing. The goal of the Sur laboratory is to understand long-term plasticity and short-term dynamics in networks of the developing and adult cortex. In addition, we aim to use insights from brain development to understand mechanisms of developmental brain disorders.
Latest Publications
Tropea D., Giacometti E., Wilson N.R., Beard C., McCurry C., Fu D.D., Flannery R., Jaenisch R., Sur M. Partial reversal of Rett Syndrome-like symptoms in MeCP2 mutant mice. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 106:2029-2034. 2009. [PDF]
Page D.T., Kuti O.J., Prestia C., Sur M. Haploinsufficiency for Pten and Serotonin transporter cooperatively influences brain size and social behavior. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 106:1989-1994. 2009. [PDF
Tropea D., Van Wart A., Sur M. Molecular mechanisms of experience-dependent plasticity in visual cortex. Phil Trans R Soc B. 364(1515):341-355. 2009. [PDF]