In order to increase the accuracy of evaluating seismic response of structures, it is critical to conduct dynamic analyses based upon precise nonlinear models being as consistent as possible with the real conditions of corresponding structures. The concentrated plasticity model including one elastic element and two nonlinear spring elements at both ends has been considered within the research c...

Studies at the basic and clinical levels demonstrate that neuronal atrophy and cell death occur in response to stress and in the brains of depressed patients. Although the mechanisms have yet to be fully elucidated, progress has been made in characterizing the signal transduction cascades that control neuronal atrophy and programmed cell death and that may be involved in the action of antidepre...

Ashhad S, Johnston D, Narayanan R. Activation of InsP3 receptors is sufficient for inducing graded intrinsic plasticity in rat hippocampal pyramidal neurons. J Neurophysiol 113: 2002–2013, 2015. First published December 31, 2014; doi:10.1152/jn.00833.2014.— The synaptic plasticity literature has focused on establishing necessity and sufficiency as two essential and distinct features in causally...

The second messenger cyclic AMP (cAMP) plays an important role in synaptic plasticity. Although there is evidence for local control of synaptic transmission and plasticity, it is less clear whether a similar spatial confinement of cAMP signaling exists. Here, we suggest a possible biophysical basis for the site-specific regulation of synaptic plasticity by cAMP, a highly diffusible small molecu...

Learning about motivationally important stimuli involves plasticity in the amygdala, a temporal lobe structure. Amygdala-dependent learning involves a growing number of plasticity-related signaling pathways also implicated in brain development, suggesting that learning-related signaling in juveniles may simultaneously influence development. Here, we review the pleiotropic functions in nervous s...

Theoretical and computational frameworks for synaptic plasticity and learning have a long and cherished history, with few parallels within the well-established literature for plasticity of voltage-gated ion channels. In this study, we derive rules for plasticity in the hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels, and assess the synergy between synaptic and HCN channel pla...

On the basis of plastic bounding surface model, the damage theory for structured soils and unsaturated soil mechanics, an elastoplastic model for unsaturated loessic soils under cyclic loading has been elaborated. Firstly, the description of bond degradation in a damage framework is given, linking the damage of soil’s structure to the accumulated strain. The Barcelona Basic Model (BBM) was cons...