With good timing, experiences can rewire old brains
Adult mice make more links between new and existing nerve cells in toy-filled environments
New experiences can rewire old brains — but the timing has to be just right.
Scientists have found that when adult mice spend time in cages with toys, tunnels and running wheels, a part of their brain creates many more connections between new and existing nerve cells than it does in mice kept in toy-free cages. But the boost in brain rewiring happens only from two to six weeks after the new brain cells are born, the researchers report in the Feb. 18 Neuron.