What is NeuroDevelopment and Neurodevelopmental Sciences

What is Neurodevelopment

and Neurodevelopmental Sciences - Neuro Development and Neural Health

What is Neurodevelopment?

Neurodevelopment is the process by which the nervous system develops, grows and matures, from the embryonic stage, birth to adulthood.
Neurodevelopment involves the formation, migration, differentiation, and integration of neurons and glia, as well as the establishment and refinement of synaptic connections and neural circuits. Neurodevelopment is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors, and it underlies the emergence of cognitive, emotional, social, and motor functions.

Neurodevelopment and the Brain

Neurodevelopment studies the changes that occur in the brain structure and function over time. The main sections of brain development are: cellular and systems.
Cellular development refers to the process of molecular and cellular events that shape the brain architecture, such as synaptogenesis (the formation of synapses), myelination (the insulation of axons), apoptosis (the programmed cell death), and neurogenesis (the generation of new neurons).
Systems development refers to the functional organization and connectivity of brain regions and networks, such as cortical specialization (the differentiation of brain areas for specific functions), plasticity (the ability of the brain to adapt to experience), and pruning (the elimination of excess or unused synapses).
Both cellular and systems development are dynamic and interactive processes that span from prenatal to postnatal periods. They are also influenced by various factors, such as hormones, nutrition, stress, drugs, infections, trauma, and social interactions.
Disruptions or abnormalities in neurodevelopment can lead to various mental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, schizophrenia, and intellectual disability. Therefore, understanding neurodevelopment is crucial for improving the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of these conditions.

NeuroPlasticity or Brain Plasticity

Neuro Development

-
Neuro Development - The study of NeuroDevelopment draws on both neuroscience and developmental biology.
NeuroDevelopment studies neuroscience and biology, and other sciences to describes the mechanisms by which nervous systems grows and connect from embryonic development and throughout life.
NeuroDevelopmental processes starts from stem cell that grows to axons and neurons which are finally thought to underlie learning and memory.
The neural development describes the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which complex nervous systems emerge during embryonic development and throughout life.
Embryonic neural development includes topics related with the birth and differentiation of neurons from stem cell precursors, the migration of immature neurons from their birthplaces in the embryo to their final positions, outgrowth of axons from neurons and guidance of the motile growth cone through the embryo towards postsynaptic partners, the creation of synapses between these axons and their postsynaptic partners, and finally the lifelong changes in synapses which are thought to underlie learning and memory.
The NeuroDevelopmental processes typically, can be broadly divided into two classes: activity-independent mechanisms and activity-dependent mechanisms. Activity-independent mechanisms are generally believed to occur as hardwired processes determined by genetic programs played out within individual neurons. These include differentiation, migration and axon guidance to their initial target areas.
These processes are thought of as being independent of neural activity and sensory experience. Once axons reach their target areas, activity-dependent mechanisms come into play. Neural activity and sensory experience will mediate formation of new synapses, as well as synaptic plasticity, which will be responsible for refinement of the nascent neural circuits.
Developmental neuroscience uses a variety of animal models including the fruit fly (Drosophila melanogaster), the zebrafish (Danio rerio), Xenopus laevis tadpoles and the worm Caenorhabditis elegans, among others species.

NeuroTraining process enhances brain performance just like exercising keeps the body in healthy condition.

Birth and NeuroDevelopment

The normal development of the fetus during pregnancy is very precise and needs to maintain proper order of development in order to grow correctly to give the new infant a chance at normal neural development and thus, a healthy life.
But this process of development can be easily disrupted though.
These problems or disruptions in development can lead to serious problems awaiting the newborn child.
These developmental problems can be caused by numerous factors, either internal or external, to the fetus, which lead to the possibility of severe mental disorders and physical issues.
Most children and parents never experience these types of disabilities and hardships, but there are also many that do suffer the terrible outcomes of abnormalities during NeuroDevelopment.
There are many of disorders or abnormalities in neurodevelopment.
These disorders can also range in severity according to the amount of unusual development of the nervous system of the infant.
Even after birth, the first few years of the infants life are very important to proper development of the body and nervous system, and the newborn can still undergo serious problems and fall prey to serious mental disorders.
One such type of mental disorder associated with improper neural development is autism.
Improper development of the nervous system can lead to multiple problems and affect the rest of the childs life.

Neurogenesis or Neuro Genesis is the process of birth of neurons.

Neurological development

Normal neurological development generally occurs in the same pattern with every person, and follows steps or stages of development at different times in the growth of the fetus during pregnancy.
These steps of growth are regulated by numerous hormones and neurotransmitters found in the body at early stages of development, such as serotonin.
Serotonin is thought to regulate the development of target tissues and other serotonergic neurons which eventually leads to the proper growth of cells at their designated areas to operate properly.
Serotonin is different from other hormones and neurotransmitters in that after development and birth, only about two percent of the serotonin found in the body is found in the brain, and the rest is located in the abdomen.
Most other neurotransmitters found in the brain during development are usually found in great quantity after birth as well.
Also, serotonin levels slowly decline to adult levels at around five years of age.
Serotonin also effects neurogenesis, synaptic maintenance and synaptogenesis, dendritic development, and cell migration.
Other neurotransmitters used in the normal growth of the central nervous system are dopamine, glutamate, glycine, as well as many more.
Dopamine, for instance, has been found to control neurite outgrowth, as well as neuron branching.

Stages of Neurodevelopment

Neurodevelopmental stages
There are five major stages in normal human neurodevelopment.
The first stage occurs during the third or fourth weeks of development, when a patch of tissue develops into the neural plate, which will eventually develop into the nervous system.
The neural plate folds over and becomes the neural groove.
Over time, the neural groove will pinch shut, and form the neural tube, which is the beginning of the spinal cord and cerebral ventricles.
While the neural tube is forming, the neural crest also forms.
The neural crest eventually becomes the peripheral nervous system, neurons, and glia cells.
Near the end of this first stage, around the sixth month of development, the beginnings of the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain develop.
These three parts of the brain are the basic foundations and sections of the fully developed human brain, which is why it is important for these three to properly develop.
The second stage of neural development is marked by rapid growth of neural cells after the neural tube is formed.
During this period the cells grows, divide and multiply in the ventricular zone of the immature brain.

Neural Migration

The migration of neural cells out of the ventricular zone, along radiating glia cells to their appropriate location is the third stage of that process.
During this migration, cells move through different zones, or layers, of the brain.
The cells can either move directly through these layers, or stay and develop there to become specialized.
Cells migrating to the subventricular zone and becoming either glia cells or interneurons, is one example of neural migration.
Wherever the cells migrate to, when they reach their final destination, they begin to group themselves together, or aggregate, based on their similar functions, and stay together due to cell-adhesion molecules, or CAMs.
After the cells have aggregated together, they begin to grow axons and dendrites.
These axons and dendrites must grow to their correct target in order to function properly.
This growth is associated with the fourth stage of development.

Finally, because the brain develops 50 percent more neurons than the brain will ever need or use, the fifth stage is involved with neuron death and synapse rearrangement.
Because of the extra cells, this causes competition between neurons to find their correct targets.
If they do not reach the correct target, they will not receive the neurotropin, which preserves their life.
This competition ensures that only the strongest neurons will survive to be used by their nervous systems.
When the neurons die, their vacancies are filled with axon terminals of surviving neurons.
This increases the selectivity of transmission in the brain.

The brain does not stop developing after birth.
The brain quadruples in size until adulthood.
This is due to the formation of new synapses, increased myelination of axons, and increased branching of dendrites.
Also, because of increased hormonal secretions, puberty is a time when the brain is subject to development of neural circuits involved in mental health and illness.
These changes involve the maturation of the frontal and temporal cortex, amygdala and hippocampus.
Also, there is decreased grey matter in the cortex, increased myelination, and increased density of the white matter.
The increased myelination increases the speed of neural transmissions by surrounding the axons in a lipid layer that promotes electrical neural impulses, thereby allowing for thoughts and actions in the brain to be carried out faster.
This increased myelination is the cause of the increased density of white matter because white matter is made of neurons with myelinated axons.

There are also many different ways that this development of the brain can be altered, and the mental health of the individual can be compromised and changed.
Maternal deprivation causing stress leads to increased neuron and glia cell death in infant rats.
A lack of glycogen synthase leads to genetic malfunctions and defects, which causes abnormal gene development in the brain.
Genetic and environmental factors can interfere with maturation and development of certain specialized cognitive areas of the brain, such as the ontogenic area.
Improper nutrition of the mother can lead to the lack of proper vitamins and minerals being provided to the fetus.
Toxins found in the area lead to increased apoptosis of healthy neurons.
Mutations in CAMs lead to cells aggregating in the wrong places with the wrong types of cells.
All of these possible dysfunctions and abnormalities can lead to any number of mental illnesses in the child.
One of the more common mental illnesses found in children is autism.

What is NeuroDevelopment ?

Neurodevelopment is a term referring to the brain's development of neurological pathways that influence performance or functioning (e.g., intellectual functioning)

Neurodevelopment Introduction and concepts. Milestones - Academy