Submitted by RandomName01a t3_105fd7w in askscience
marypoppindatpussy t1_j4p4v5t wrote
yes this also happens naturally in the brain. this is the basis of synaptic plasticity, the mechanism by which we learn. i'm gonna make the distinction though that the electrical potential at which the neuron fires does not change, rather it is the number of receptors on the surface of the cell that changes. these receptors modulate the amount of ions that can flow into/out of the cell and that causes a change in the membrane potential of the cell which leads to it firing.
so changing the electrical potential at which the cell fires is not something we can safely change as it alters way too much about how the cell works in general (and depending on how you do it can kill the organism), but manipulating (with drugs, genetic manipulation) the receptors on the cell surface that modulate the ion flow in/out of the cell is safer and more built for tweaking.
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