Neurogenesis and Apoptotic Cell Death

Abstract

Traditionally, the adult brain has been thought of as a very static structure. Essentially, the neurons you are born with are all you have; once they are lost, they cannot be regenerated. This view left very little room for neurogenesis, the birth of new neurons; or apoptosis, neuronal-programmed cell death, for that matter. In the past several years, this belief has been thoroughly upended. In this chapter, we will try to give a perspective on the exciting recent developments and present the new views of life and death in the adult brain that have arisen from them. We have divided this chapter into two segments. The first part deals with postnatal functions of neurogenesis and apoptotic cell death in the healthy brain, whereas the second part focuses on neurogenesis and apoptotic processes following stroke and other neurodegenerative diseases.