Abstract:

Neuroplasticity reflects the brain's capacity to reorganize itself due to endogenous or exogenous events, including sensory deprivation. The debate on how neuroplasticity emerges and which structures can suffer and regulate neuroplastic changes is still fierce. It has been shown that in congenitally deaf humans the auditory cortex (AC) can be coopted to process visual input. But how is this visual information rerouted to AC? Here, we will present a review of the main studies concerning this issue and emphasize the extant hypotheses that focus on the neuroplastic changes observed in congenitally deaf individuals at the neural and behavioral level. Finally, we will focus on the role of sign language in the neuroplasticity presented by congenitally deaf humans and present some of the important implications these studies may have on the quality of life in deaf individuals.