How to Rewire Your Brain & Learn Faster | Dr. Michael Kilgard

Neuroplasticity Once Thought Limited to Childhood, Kilgard Finds Adult Brain Can Rewire

Huberman and Dr. Michael Kilgard delved into the intricate landscape of neuroplasticity, revealing that age is not as much of a barrier to brain growth and reorganization as once thought.

Traditional View: Young Brains Change Easily, Adults Less So; Kilgard's Research Shows Adults Can Rewire With the Right Conditions

For a century, the prevailing belief in neuroscience was that young brains possessed a high degree of plasticity, while adult brains were significantly less capable of learning and rewiring. Huberman emphasizes that his colleague’s research pertains to plasticity in the adult brain, countering this traditional view.

He notes that science supports the idea that the brain's passive reorganization happens robustly until about age 25 but also underscores that significant changes can occur in adulthood. Dr. Michael Kilgard has been instrumental in this area, demonstrating through research in the late 1990s that adult brains can indeed undergo massive changes under the right conditions.

Kilgard's Study on Neuromodulators and Adult Neural Plasticity

Kilgard reveals that every experience we have — from bedtime stories to walks in the park — influences the brain's wiring, suggesting that adult brains retain the capacity for plasticity beyond early childhood. This concept overturns the long-held belief that the brain is rather static and unchangeable after a certain age.

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Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life, which is instrumental in the process of learning. Recent insights into neuromodulators offer a deeper understanding of their vital role in this process.

Neuromodulators Like Acetylcholine, [restricted term], Serotonin, and [restricted term] Enable Learning and Drive Neuroplasticity

Michael Kilgard and Andrew Huberman discuss the foundational role played by neuromodulators such as acetylcholine, [restricted term], serotonin, and [restricted term] in neuroplasticity and learning. Huberman describes how neuromodulators amplify the activity of neural circuits related to plasticity, especially during active engagement and self-directed learning activities.

Neuromodulator Timing Dictates Synaptic Strengthening or Weakening

Kilgard details the importance of the timing of neuromodulator release in the adult brain, which can lead to significant rewiring of circuits and enable learning. He highlights an experiment with monkeys, where focusing on a stimulus results in increased neuron response due to the stimulus's relevance and reward, emphasizing the role of acetylcholine in memory and attention. Kilgard explains that the timing of neuromodulator release is crucial; it can dictate whether synaptic connections will be stronger or weaker, with proper timing leading to long-term potentiation (strengthening) or long-term depression (weakening).

Brain Uses Timing and Neuromodulator Release to Update Connections Through "Four-Factor Learning Rule"

Kilgard sheds light on a biological basis for learning, known as the "four-factor learning rule," where certain proteins and receptors bind neurotransmitters such as glutamate, serotonin, and [restricted term]. This rule illustrates the brain’s ability to adapt connections based on experience.

Factors Allow Brain to Adapt Connections Based On Experience

Huberman and Kilgard stress that the brain's adaptation and learning heavily depend on the timing of neuromodulator release. They discuss how consistent and repeated association conditions synapses to be strengthened or weakened, indicating that experiences like making bagels or meaningful interactions can have lasting effects and create meaning.

Furthermore, Kilgard describes the inverted U effect with neuromodulators s ...

Advancements in the field of neuroscience offer new pathways to treat neurological and psychiatric conditions by harnessing the brain's ability to reorganize itself, known as neuroplasticity.

Kilgard's Research on Targeted Vagus Nerve Stimulation for Beneficial Neural Plasticity

Michael Kilgard's research explores how targeted vagus nerve stimulation can promote beneficial neural plasticity and considerable advancements in the treatment of various conditions.

Approach Treats Tinnitus, Stroke, and Spinal Cord Injuries By Retraining Neural Circuits

Kilgard discovered that by stimulating specific brain circuits using devices like microelectrodes, one can enhance neuroplasticity. This technique, initially built upon the successes of deep brain stimulation, retargeted its focus to the more accessible method of vagus nerve stimulation due to its impact on the brain globally. Funded by DARPA for the Targeted Neuroplasticity Training (TNT) program, Kilgard's team developed an implanted device to stimulate the vagus nerve, which releases neuromodulators at precise timings. This breakthrough made it possible for people to overcome conditions such as tinnitus, stroke, and spinal cord injuries by retraining neural circuits. Human studies have shown significant gains in stroke patients, particularly in restoring hand function, which were unachievable without this technology.

Kilgard has described a detailed approach for treating tinnitus that includes sound therapy to retrain neural circuits by narrowing the receptive fields that contribute to the condition. His team's successful methods targeted spinal cord injuries and stroke, with stroke being the focus due to its clear causes and measurable outcomes. The goal is to activate neurons beyond traditional therapies, enhancing neuroplasticity and allowing patients to lose their diagnosis. It is important to note that Kilgard is an inventor and shareholder in Microtransponder, the company offering this technology.

Neuroplasticity Therapies Offer Hope For Treating PTSD, Schizophrenia, and Other Disorders By Targeting Neural Mechanisms

Leveraging Neuroplasticity For Cures, Not Just Symptom Management, In Brain Conditions

Neuroplasticity therapies offer hope beyond the treatment of tinnitus, strokes, and spinal cord injuries. Kilgard discusses the potential for these therapies to address severe and persistent PTSD by helping those 'stuck' due to traumatic events to retrain the brain. He highlights the need for new avenues in neuroscience to ...

Michael Kilgard highlights the intricate structure and operation of the human brain and the challenges it presents for treating brain disorders, advocating for comprehensive treatments that leverage neuroplasticity.

Brain: Complex System With Trillions of Synapses and Interconnected Circuits

Kilgard speaks on the sophistication of the human brain, emphasizing that it runs on a much larger network than artificial intelligence systems, with trillions of computations happening simultaneously. He marvels at the trillions of connections being made every second, pointing out that the brain dynamically decides whether to strengthen, weaken, or maintain synapses.

Complexity Likely Precludes "Silver Bullet" Solutions For Brain Disorders

The brain's complexity and the adaptability of its synapses suggest that simple, one-size-fits-all solutions for brain disorders are unlikely, emphasizes Kilgard. He compares the brain's complexity to the vastness and variability of ecosystems or economic systems, where a multitude of interconnected issues exist rather than a single problem to solve.

Kilgard Stresses Embracing Complexity, as the Brain's Adaptability Defies Simplification

Kilgard suggests that because of the brain's intricacy and the diversity in individual experiences, understanding and addressing it necessitates a complex approach that accounts for the various inputs that influence its function and adaptation.

"Effective Treatments Combine Devices, Drugs, and Training To Leverage Neuroplasticity and Address ...

Advancements in neuroscience are revealing more about how to optimize neuroplasticity—the brain's ability to change and adapt. Researchers are finding that combining different treatments can make a significant impact on brain function.

Kilgard's Vagus Nerve Stimulation Shows Timed Devices Enhance Neuroplasticity and Function

Michael Kilgard’s research shows that precise timing in brain stimulation is crucial to facilitate neuroplasticity, similar to Pavlov's classical conditioning experiments. His approach involves using timed devices, such as vagus nerve stimulators, which enhance neuroplasticity through the targeted delivery of neuromodulator bursts enabling therapeutic rewiring of neural circuits.

Neuromodulator Burst Triggers Therapeutic Neural Circuit Rewiring

Kilgard hypothesizes that by externally activating neurons with an electrode—potentially through vagus nerve stimulation—a burst of acetylcholine is released, mirroring the natural occurrence when an animal focuses or pays attention, thus enhancing neuroplasticity and function. Kilgard explains that his vagus nerve stimulation device, which provides brief bursts, activates three crucial neurotransmitters, enhancing neuroplasticity and the function of neural circuits.

Kilgard's research includes the use of a vagus nerve stimulator, a device that he works with that achieves impressive results by increasing specificity and avoiding the need to take a drug. Kilgard points out that even years post-implantation, patients continue to make gains, suggesting that significant neural plasticity can occur even in stages previously thought to be beyond improvement. Huberman compares the stimulator device Kilgard uses to the size of a Carmex lip balm container, with the chip itself being the size of a pinky nail, illustrating the device's convenience and potential for everyday use.

Targeted, Multifaceted Approach Needed For Drug-Influenced Neuroplasticity

A multifaceted approach is essential to optimize neuroplasticity. The conversation involves SSRIs as tools to induce neuroplasticity, which can be an essential part of treatment for conditions like OCD when combined with activities that promote neuroplasticity. The potential role of psychedelics and empathogens in promoting plasticity is also discussed, suggesting that the experience they facilitate may lead to change.

However, a large-scale randomized trial with stroke patients using [restricted term] ([restricted term]) found no significant improvement and even unintended side effects like increased hip fractures, highlighting the complexity of neuroplasticity and the need for multifaceted approaches to treatment.

Harnessing Neuroplasticity: Integrating Devices, Drugs, and Training For Brain Conditions

Kilgard talks about combining therapies for complex problems such as obesity and neurodevelopmental disorders. He mentions the FDA challenge in proposing multiple forms of ther ...