Neuroplasticity

Neuroplasticity is an umbrella term for several mechanisms, not an outcome. They include changes in how strongly synapses connect, the formation of new synapses, changes in the structure and function of neurons, and the generation of new neurons [1].

A 2025 review lists the hallmarks of brain plasticity as developmental flexibility, interplay between genes and environment, and structural and functional changes such as neurogenesis (the birth of new neurons), axonal sprouting and synaptic remodeling [2]. According to a 2023 review, neuroplasticity plays a part in learning and memory and in recovery from brain injury [1].

A phrase such as "supports neuroplasticity" describes a mechanism. It does not say which of the processes above changed, in which species, or whether any change showed up in how people think or perform.

Training research gives a useful caution. A review in the Annual Review of Neuroscience notes that learning is typically quite specific to the exact task used during training, which limits practical uses [3]. The same review discusses whether complex training, such as action video game play, may promote plasticity and a wider capacity its authors call learning to learn [3]. Even so, a gain on one practiced task, or a change in a brain measure, does not by itself show a broader gain.

On our compound pages, plasticity findings sit under how a compound may work and are labeled as mechanism, with the species or cell model named. Grades attach only to outcomes measured in people, such as memory or attention, compared with a placebo.

• BDNF
• Neurotransmitter
• Glutamate