Homeostatic plasticity and NMDA receptor trafficking

Learning, memory and brain development are associated with long-lasting modifications of synapses that are guided by specific patterns of neuronal activity. Such modifications include classical Hebbian plasticities (such as long-term potentiation and long-term depression), which are rapid and synapse-specific, and others, such as synaptic scaling and metaplasticity, that work over longer timescales and are crucial for maintaining and orchestrating neuronal network function. The cellular mechanisms underlying Hebbian plasticity have been well studied and involve rapid changes in the trafficking of highly mobile AMPA receptors. An emerging concept is that activity-dependent alterations in NMDA receptor trafficking contribute to homeostatic plasticity at central glutamatergic synapses.