long-term potentiation

noun

Definition of long-term potentiation

: 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

First Known Use of long-term potentiation

1969

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

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Medical Dictionary

long-term potentiation

noun

medical Definition of long-term potentiation

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, June 1995

—abbreviation LTP