A propagating ERKII switch forms zones of elevated dendritic activation correlated with plasticity.

Strong inputs to neurons trigger complex biochemical events leading to synaptic plasticity. These biochemical events occur at many spatial scales, ranging from submicron dendritic spines to signals that propagate hundreds of microns from dendrites to the nucleus. ERKII is an important signaling molecule that is involved in many aspects of plasticity, including local excitability, communication with the nucleus, and control of local protein synthesis.

Synaptic plasticity in vitro and in silico: insights into an intracellular signaling maze.

Synaptic plasticity provides a record of neuronal activity and is a likely basis for memory. The early apparent simplicity of the process of synaptic plasticity has been lost in a flood of experimental data that now implicates some 200 signaling molecules in cellular memory. It is now clear that these signaling networks perform surprisingly sophisticated cellular decisions that weigh factors such as input patterns, location of stimulus, history of activity, and context.

A role for ERKII in synaptic pattern selectivity on the time-scale of minutes.

Stimulus reinforcement strengthens learning. Intervals between reinforcement affect both the kind of learning that occurs and the amount of learning. Stimuli spaced by a few minutes result in more effective learning than when massed together.