Efficient learning in children with rapid GABA boosting during and after training.

It is generally thought that children learn more efficiently than adults. One way to accomplish this is to have learning rapidly stabilized such that it is not interfered with by subsequent learning. Although γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) plays an important role in stabilization, it has been reported that GABAergic inhibitory processing is not fully matured yet in children compared with adults.

Fundamental Differences in Visual Perceptual Learning between Children and Adults.

It has remained uncertain whether the mechanisms of visual perceptual learning (VPL) remain stable across the lifespan or undergo developmental changes. This uncertainty largely originates from missing results about the mechanisms of VPL in healthy children. We here investigated the mechanisms of task-irrelevant VPL in healthy elementary school age children (7-10 years old) and compared their results to healthy young adults (18-31 years old).