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long-term potentiation
noun
: a long-lasting strengthening of the response of a postsynaptic nerve cell to stimulation across the synapse that occurs with repeated stimulation and is thought to be related to learning and long-term memory
—abbreviation LTP
Examples of long-term potentiation in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Memory formation involves a process called long-term potentiation (LTP), which is essentially the strengthening of synaptic connections between nerve cells.
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Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 14 May 2012
In the 1990s, Malenka and Nicoll were at the center of the race to unravel the precise chemical processes underlying this phenomenon, known as long-term potentiation (LTP).
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Adam Piore, Discover Magazine, 1 Apr. 2015
Memory formation involves a process called long-term potentiation (LTP) which is essentially the strengthening of synaptic connections between nerve cells.
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Neuroskeptic, Discover Magazine, 21 Aug. 2011
One way that scientists think that happens is through something called long-term potentiation.
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Megan Molteni, STAT, 15 Nov. 2021
The downside is that long-term potentiation is not the only mechanism by which our brains store information.
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Megan Molteni, STAT, 15 Nov. 2021
Sleep appears to be important for long-term potentiation, a strengthening of signals between neurons that is widely regarded as a mechanism of learning and memory.
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Steven C. Pan, Scientific American, 25 Oct. 2016
One, called long-term potentiation, consists of individual nerves modifying themselves to grow and talk to their neighboring nerves differently.
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Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 4 Mar. 2019
All animals that have long-term memories use this same basic cellular machinery; scientists worked out the details of long-term potentiation by studying California sea slugs.
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Michael Greshko, National Geographic, 4 Mar. 2019
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'long-term potentiation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1969, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of long-term potentiation was
in 1969
Dictionary Entries Near long-term potentiation
Cite this Entry
“Long-term potentiation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/long-term%20potentiation. Accessed 19 Aug. 2024.
Medical Definition
long-term potentiation
noun
: a long-lasting strengthening of the response of a postsynaptic nerve cell to stimulation across the synapse that occurs with repeated stimulation and is thought to be related to learning and long-term memory
First they repeatedly stimulated hippocampal neurons with an electric current and showed that long-term potentiation had taken place: the neurons were more sensitive to later stimulation, even an hour or more later, and more likely to transmit electric signals to their neighbors.—
Discover
—abbreviation LTP
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