Long-term potentiation and kindling: how similar are the mechanisms?

Long-term potentiation (LTP) and kindling are strikingly similar in many respects. Both are believed to model CNS plasticity, both are induced by the localized application of brief, high-frequency trains of electrical pulses through implanted electrodes, and both result in a lasting increase in the response to a constant stimulus. In addition to these formal similarities, recent findings have indicated that the two models may share aspects of an underlying neural mechanism, and this has led to the suggestion that LTP may constitute the cellular mechanism of kindling. However, other findings have indicated two models. This article discusses the differences in mechanisms and the relations between LTP and kindling.