This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Learning something new not only changes our perspectives and behavior – it actually changes the structure of our brains. Memories and experiences are recorded in the brain by altering the physical connections between neurons. Until recently, however, the protein signals that cause these tiny structural changes were too small to measure with available imaging methods. But researchers at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience created ultra-sensitive sensors and revealed the activity of two of the proteins that write memories into neural circuits in the brain. Individual neurons have many branches, or dendrites. And each dendrite can be covered with thousands of tiny bumps called spines, where messages are received from other neurons. Changes in spine size are one way memories are recorded-when lots of messages are being passed and a spine is very active, it gets bigger. Many proteins need to be activated to make spines grow..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.

Biology is designed for multi-semester biology courses for science majors. It is grounded on an evolutionary basis and includes exciting features that highlight careers in the biological sciences and everyday applications of the concepts at hand. To meet the needs of today’s instructors and students, some content has been strategically condensed while maintaining the overall scope and coverage of traditional texts for this course. Instructors can customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom. Biology also includes an innovative art program that incorporates critical thinking and clicker questions to help students understand—and apply—key concepts.

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Describe the basis of the resting membrane potentialExplain the stages of an action potential and how action potentials are propagatedExplain the similarities and differences between chemical and electrical synapsesDescribe long-term potentiation and long-term depression

This resource is a video abstract of a research paper created by Research Square on behalf of its authors. It provides a synopsis that's easy to understand, and can be used to introduce the topics it covers to students, researchers, and the general public. The video's transcript is also provided in full, with a portion provided below for preview:

"Memories seem to be created in the blink of an eye -- we can recall an event as soon as it is over. But is this actually the case? Scientists know the key signals for memory formation but have lacked the tools to figure out the details, such as when and for how long particular molecules need to be active. By developing a more precise way of disrupting signaling, researchers have now defined this window for one of the most important molecules responsible for memory. Memories are recorded through changes in synapses, or the connections, between neurons. Many synapses are located on tiny bumps called spines that are found along the branching dendrites of neurons. When synapses are very active, like they are during learning or a memorable event, molecular signaling cascades turn on. These cascades strengthen synapses and make spines grow. The protein calcium/calmodulin kinase II, or CaMKII, is required for both of these events. But precisely when and how long CaMKII needs to act was unclear..."

The rest of the transcript, along with a link to the research itself, is available on the resource itself.