BRAIN PLASTICITY, LEARNING, AND DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES

This is a time of significant gains in methodological development for examining the developing human brain. New efforts are underway to unify the understanding of the development of brain anatomy with physiological, cellular and molecular processes that influence behavioral development. This special issue provides animal models of behavior and brain develop-ment, applications of noninvasive imaging and genetic methods to human brain development and behavior, and select reviews of how these models and methods have been applied to the examination of developmental dis-abilities. This issue reflects a sampling of current approaches to the study of brain plasticity, development and learning in typically and atypically devel-oping humans and animals. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. MRDD Research Reviews 2003;9:133–134. Key Words: brain; plasticity; learning; disabilities; development We are in an explosive era of methodological develop-ment that has opened new doors for examining thedeveloping human brain in vivo. Functional neuro-imaging is providing new insights into the dynamics of neura