Neuronal Maturation: Challenges and Opportunities in a Nascent Field

Abstract

After its initial development, the nervous system matures to connect and shape the neuronal circuitry and to keep it functional in humans for decades. Here we conceptualize neuronal maturation as a research field that will have, we would argue, a strong impact on understanding the healthy and diseased nervous system. Identifying the key mechanisms underlying neuronal maturation has the potential to reverse this process in adulthood, thereby facilitating regeneration.

Keywords: axon growth and regeneration; neural plasticity; neuronal development; neuronal maturation; resilience; synapse.