BDNF and stroke disorder: BDNF has been linked to enhanced motor recovery following stroke via increased sprouting, neuronal plasticity and neurogenesis, and has thus been implicated as a factor in the beneficial effects of rehabilitation and exercise (Kurozumi et al., 2004; Schäbitz et al., 2007; Ploughman et al., 2009; Mang et al., 2013; Berretta et al., 2014; Livingston-Thomas et al., 2016; Cook et al., 2017).