On October 10, 2024, the symposium "Plasticity in Health and Disease" of the Center for Systems Neuroscience (ZSN) took place at the MHH. The center brings together neuroscience institutes from the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (TiHo), Hannover Medical School (MHH), Hanover University of Music, Drama and Media (HMTM), Leibniz University Hannover (LUH), and non-university institutions into a translational, multidisciplinary consortium. This symposium marks the beginning of active work in the newly established focus area "Plasticity" of the center, coordinated by Prof. Dr. Maximilian Lenz. Plasticity describes the structural, functional, and molecular adaptability of our nervous system, enabling everyday processes like spatial orientation and learning. Faulty regulation of this process can be observed in neurodegenerative or inflammatory diseases.
In this focus area, fundamental questions about adaptation processes in the central nervous system will be investigated under both physiological and pathological conditions within a translational and multidisciplinary environment. Numerous research groups from various research institutions in Hanover's scientific community and the center presented their current research questions. The spectrum ranged from translational neuroscience, neuroinfectious diseases, cellular interactions for maintaining neuronal function, to the molecular foundations of synaptic transmission. Immediately afterward, numerous opportunities for interaction were discussed, which are now being concretely implemented. We are convinced that investigating synaptic plasticity within this network will lead to new insights and significant innovations.