Brain Plasticity: How the Human Mind Compensates for Lost Senses

An international study, led by researchers at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, reveals that the human brain has an extraordinary ability to respond to the loss of one sense by sharpening the others.

Published in the journal PLOS Biology, the study shows that this compensatory mechanism is not unique to humans but is also a fundamental feature of much simpler nervous systems.

Testing the Simplest Nervous Systems

The researchers investigated if this compensatory ability also exists in organisms with extremely simple nervous systems. To find out, they studied a tiny worm called C. elegans. This microscopic worm is only about one millimeter long, feeds on bacteria, and has a nervous system made up of just 302 neurons (compared to about 100 billion in the human brain).

The team examined whether losing the worm’s sense of touch would enhance its sense of smell. Remarkably, they discovered a significant improvement in the worms’ ability to respond to food odors, indicating that when the worms lost the ability to feel touch, their sense of smell became sharper.

Insights Into Brain Compensation

Dr. Itai Rabinovitz, who led the study, explained: "One of the brain’s most fascinating abilities is its capacity to compensate for the loss of sensory input. We can learn a lot when we see that even a relatively simple nervous system can perform such a sophisticated brain function. In this case, the findings reveal a new threshold for the neural complexity needed to support such compensation — and they also make it much easier to uncover and understand how it works, from the molecular level to actual behavior."

A Broader Understanding of Sensory Processing

These results add to a growing body of research exploring the role of neuropeptides in cross-sensory communication. Beyond the scientific insights, they also highlight the remarkable design of living beings, and the extraordinary adaptability of even the simplest nervous systems.