M. Sheng, M.E. Greenberg, "The regulation and function of c-fos and other immediate early genes in the nervous system," Neuron, 4:477-85, 1990.
Morgan Sheng (Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California School of Medicine, San Francisco; formerly at Harvard Medical School, Boston): "The nervous system is beautifully adapted for rapid electrical signaling, but it has become clear in recent years that nerve cells do not just form passive conducting networks--they show marked long-term plasticity in both structure and function in response to external stimuli and neural activity. Such activity-dependent changes in the excitability of neurons and their connections may underlie information storage in the brain--that is, learning and memory.
"Our article draws attention to the emerging view that specific changes in gene expression in neurons appear to be critical for long-term neural plasticity. In particular, a set of genes known as cellular immediate early genes (IEGs) are activated in neurons ...
