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Abdou K, Nomoto M, Aly MH, Ibrahim AZ, Choko K, Okubo-Suzuki R, Muramatsu SI, Inokuchi K. Prefrontal coding of learned and inferred knowledge during REM and NREM sleep. Nat Commun 2024; 15:4566. [PMID: 38914541 PMCID: PMC11196720 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-48816-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2023] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 06/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Idling brain activity has been proposed to facilitate inference, insight, and innovative problem-solving. However, it remains unclear how and when the idling brain can create novel ideas. Here, we show that cortical offline activity is both necessary and sufficient for building unlearned inferential knowledge from previously acquired information. In a transitive inference paradigm, male C57BL/6J mice gained the inference 1 day after, but not shortly after, complete training. Inhibiting the neuronal computations in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) during post-learning either non-rapid eye movement (NREM) or rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, but not wakefulness, disrupted the inference without affecting the learned knowledge. In vivo Ca2+ imaging suggests that NREM sleep organizes the scattered learned knowledge in a complete hierarchy, while REM sleep computes the inferential information from the organized hierarchy. Furthermore, after insufficient learning, artificial activation of medial entorhinal cortex-ACC dialog during only REM sleep created inferential knowledge. Collectively, our study provides a mechanistic insight on NREM and REM coordination in weaving inferential knowledge, thus highlighting the power of idling brain in cognitive flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kareem Abdou
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, 11562, Egypt
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Masanori Nomoto
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED), Tokyo, Japan
| | - Mohamed H Aly
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Pharmacology Department, Faculty of Pharmacy, The British University in Egypt, Cairo, 11837, Egypt
| | - Ahmed Z Ibrahim
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Cairo University, Cairo, 11562, Egypt
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Kiriko Choko
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Reiko Okubo-Suzuki
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Shin-Ichi Muramatsu
- Division of Neurological Gene Therapy, Centre for Open Innovation, Jichi Medical University, Tochigi, 3290498, Japan
- Centre for Gene and Cell Therapy, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 1088639, Japan
| | - Kaoru Inokuchi
- Research Centre for Idling Brain Science, University of Toyama, Toyama, 930-0194, Japan.
- Department of Biochemistry, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.
- CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.
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Gaine ME, Bahl E, Chatterjee S, Michaelson JJ, Abel T, Lyons LC. Altered hippocampal transcriptome dynamics following sleep deprivation. Mol Brain 2021; 14:125. [PMID: 34384474 PMCID: PMC8361790 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-021-00835-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 07/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Widespread sleep deprivation is a continuing public health problem in the United States and worldwide affecting adolescents and adults. Acute sleep deprivation results in decrements in spatial memory and cognitive impairments. The hippocampus is vulnerable to acute sleep deprivation with changes in gene expression, cell signaling, and protein synthesis. Sleep deprivation also has long lasting effects on memory and performance that persist after recovery sleep, as seen in behavioral studies from invertebrates to humans. Although previous research has shown that acute sleep deprivation impacts gene expression, the extent to which sleep deprivation affects gene regulation remains unknown. Using an unbiased deep RNA sequencing approach, we investigated the effects of acute sleep deprivation on gene expression in the hippocampus. We identified 1,146 genes that were significantly dysregulated following sleep deprivation with 507 genes upregulated and 639 genes downregulated, including protein coding genes and long non-coding RNAs not previously identified as impacted by sleep deprivation. Notably, genes significantly upregulated after sleep deprivation were associated with RNA splicing and the nucleus. In contrast, downregulated genes were associated with cell adhesion, dendritic localization, the synapse, and postsynaptic membrane. Furthermore, we found through independent experiments analyzing a subset of genes that three hours of recovery sleep following acute sleep deprivation was sufficient to normalize mRNA abundance for most genes, although exceptions occurred for some genes that may affect RNA splicing or transcription. These results clearly demonstrate that sleep deprivation differentially regulates gene expression on multiple transcriptomic levels to impact hippocampal function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie E Gaine
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Experimental Therapeutics (PSET), College of Pharmacy, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Ethan Bahl
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Snehajyoti Chatterjee
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Jacob J Michaelson
- Department of Psychiatry, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
- Iowa Institute of Human Genetics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Ted Abel
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Lisa C Lyons
- Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Iowa Neuroscience Institute, Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
- Department of Biological Science, Program in Neuroscience, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL, USA.
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Li Q, Zhu ZY, Lu J, Chao YC, Zhou XX, Huang Y, Chen XM, Su DS, Yu WF, Gu XY. Sleep deprivation of rats increases postsurgical expression and activity of L-type calcium channel in the dorsal root ganglion and slows recovery from postsurgical pain. Acta Neuropathol Commun 2019; 7:217. [PMID: 31870460 PMCID: PMC6929318 DOI: 10.1186/s40478-019-0868-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2019] [Accepted: 12/10/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Perioperative sleep disturbance is a risk factor for persistent pain after surgery. Clinical studies have shown that patients with insufficient sleep before and after surgery experience more intense and long-lasting postoperative pain. We hypothesize that sleep deprivation alters L-type calcium channels in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG), thus delaying the recovery from post-surgical pain. To verify this hypothesis, and to identify new predictors and therapeutic targets for persistent postoperative pain, we first established a model of postsurgical pain with perioperative sleep deprivation (SD) by administering hind paw plantar incision to sleep deprivation rats. Then we conducted behavioral tests, including tests with von Frey filaments and a laser heat test, to verify sensory pain, measured the expression of L-type calcium channels using western blotting and immunofluorescence of dorsal root ganglia (an important neural target for peripheral nociception), and examined the activity of L-type calcium channels and neuron excitability using electrophysiological measurements. We validated the findings by performing intraperitoneal injections of calcium channel blockers and microinjections of dorsal root ganglion cells with adeno-associated virus. We found that short-term sleep deprivation before and after surgery increased expression and activity of L-type calcium channels in the lumbar dorsal root ganglia, and delayed recovery from postsurgical pain. Blocking these channels reduced impact of sleep deprivation. We conclude that the increased expression and activity of L-type calcium channels is associated with the sleep deprivation-mediated prolongation of postoperative pain. L-type calcium channels are thus a potential target for management of postoperative pain.
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Seibt J, Frank MG. Primed to Sleep: The Dynamics of Synaptic Plasticity Across Brain States. Front Syst Neurosci 2019; 13:2. [PMID: 30774586 PMCID: PMC6367653 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2019.00002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Accepted: 01/09/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
It is commonly accepted that brain plasticity occurs in wakefulness and sleep. However, how these different brain states work in concert to create long-lasting changes in brain circuitry is unclear. Considering that wakefulness and sleep are profoundly different brain states on multiple levels (e.g., cellular, molecular and network activation), it is unlikely that they operate exactly the same way. Rather it is probable that they engage different, but coordinated, mechanisms. In this article we discuss how plasticity may be divided across the sleep-wake cycle, and how synaptic changes in each brain state are linked. Our working model proposes that waking experience triggers short-lived synaptic events that are necessary for transient plastic changes and mark (i.e., 'prime') circuits and synapses for further processing in sleep. During sleep, synaptic protein synthesis at primed synapses leads to structural changes necessary for long-term information storage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Seibt
- Surrey Sleep Research Centre, University of Surrey, Guildford, United Kingdom
| | - Marcos G. Frank
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University Spokane, Spokane, WA, United States
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Rennó-Costa C, da Silva ACC, Blanco W, Ribeiro S. Computational models of memory consolidation and long-term synaptic plasticity during sleep. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2018; 160:32-47. [PMID: 30321652 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2018.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2018] [Revised: 09/18/2018] [Accepted: 10/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The brain stores memories by persistently changing the connectivity between neurons. Sleep is known to be critical for these changes to endure. Research on the neurobiology of sleep and the mechanisms of long-term synaptic plasticity has provided data in support of various theories of how brain activity during sleep affects long-term synaptic plasticity. The experimental findings - and therefore the theories - are apparently quite contradictory, with some evidence pointing to a role of sleep in the forgetting of irrelevant memories, whereas other results indicate that sleep supports the reinforcement of the most valuable recollections. A unified theoretical framework is in need. Computational modeling and simulation provide grounds for the quantitative testing and comparison of theoretical predictions and observed data, and might serve as a strategy to organize the rather complicated and diverse pool of data and methodologies used in sleep research. This review article outlines the emerging progress in the computational modeling and simulation of the main theories on the role of sleep in memory consolidation.
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Affiliation(s)
- César Rennó-Costa
- BioMe - Bioinformatics Multidisciplinary Environment, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil; Digital Metropolis Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil
| | - Ana Cláudia Costa da Silva
- BioMe - Bioinformatics Multidisciplinary Environment, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil; Digital Metropolis Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil; Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil; Federal University of Paraiba, João Pessoa, Brazil
| | - Wilfredo Blanco
- BioMe - Bioinformatics Multidisciplinary Environment, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil; Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil; State University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil
| | - Sidarta Ribeiro
- Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, Brazil.
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Cirelli C. A Molecular Window on Sleep: Changes in Gene Expression between Sleep and Wakefulness. Neuroscientist 2016; 11:63-74. [PMID: 15632279 DOI: 10.1177/1073858404270900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Sleep is thought to be “by the brain and for the brain,” but despite decades of behavioral and neurophysiologic research, we still do not know why the brain actually needs to sleep. Recently, gene expression studies have allowed researchers to investigate the molecular correlates of sleep and wakefulness and to gain new insights into the benefits that sleep may bring at the cellular level. In the latest series of studies, a genome-wide screening of brain gene expression was performed in rats that had been asleep, spontaneously awake, or sleep deprived for 8 hours. It was found that of ~15,000 transcripts expressed in the cerebral cortex, about 5% change their expression levels depending on behavioral state but independently of time of day. Half of the modulated genes increase in wakefulness and half in sleep. Moreover, wakefulness-related and sleep-related transcripts belong to different functional categories. Waking-related transcripts are involved in energy metabolism, excitatory neurotransmission, transcriptional activation, synaptic potentiation and memory acquisition, and the response to cellular stress. Sleep-related transcripts are involved in brain protein synthesis, synaptic consolidation/depression, and membrane trafficking and maintenance, including cholesterol metabolism, myelin formation, and synaptic vesicle turnover.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Cirelli
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53719, USA.
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Abstract
Sleep occurs in a wide range of animal species as a vital process for the maintenance of homeostasis, metabolic restoration, physiological regulation, and adaptive cognitive functions in the central nervous system. Long-term perturbations induced by the lack of sleep are mostly mediated by changes at the level of transcription and translation. This chapter reviews studies in humans, rodents, and flies to address the various ways by which sleep deprivation affects gene expression in the nervous system, with a focus on genes related to neuronal plasticity, brain function, and cognition. However, the effects of sleep deprivation on gene expression and the functional consequences of sleep loss are clearly not restricted to the cognitive domain but may include increased inflammation, expression of stress-related genes, general impairment of protein translation, metabolic imbalance, and thermal deregulation.
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Abstract
Over more than a century of research has established the fact that sleep benefits the retention of memory. In this review we aim to comprehensively cover the field of "sleep and memory" research by providing a historical perspective on concepts and a discussion of more recent key findings. Whereas initial theories posed a passive role for sleep enhancing memories by protecting them from interfering stimuli, current theories highlight an active role for sleep in which memories undergo a process of system consolidation during sleep. Whereas older research concentrated on the role of rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep, recent work has revealed the importance of slow-wave sleep (SWS) for memory consolidation and also enlightened some of the underlying electrophysiological, neurochemical, and genetic mechanisms, as well as developmental aspects in these processes. Specifically, newer findings characterize sleep as a brain state optimizing memory consolidation, in opposition to the waking brain being optimized for encoding of memories. Consolidation originates from reactivation of recently encoded neuronal memory representations, which occur during SWS and transform respective representations for integration into long-term memory. Ensuing REM sleep may stabilize transformed memories. While elaborated with respect to hippocampus-dependent memories, the concept of an active redistribution of memory representations from networks serving as temporary store into long-term stores might hold also for non-hippocampus-dependent memory, and even for nonneuronal, i.e., immunological memories, giving rise to the idea that the offline consolidation of memory during sleep represents a principle of long-term memory formation established in quite different physiological systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Björn Rasch
- Division of Biopsychology, Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
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Key electrophysiological, molecular, and metabolic signatures of sleep and wakefulness revealed in primary cortical cultures. J Neurosci 2012; 32:12506-17. [PMID: 22956841 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2306-12.2012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 120] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Although sleep is defined as a behavioral state, at the cortical level sleep has local and use-dependent features suggesting that it is a property of neuronal assemblies requiring sleep in function of the activation experienced during prior wakefulness. Here we show that mature cortical cultured neurons display a default state characterized by synchronized burst-pause firing activity reminiscent of sleep. This default sleep-like state can be changed to transient tonic firing reminiscent of wakefulness when cultures are stimulated with a mixture of waking neurotransmitters and spontaneously returns to sleep-like state. In addition to electrophysiological similarities, the transcriptome of stimulated cultures strikingly resembles the cortical transcriptome of sleep-deprived mice, and plastic changes as reflected by AMPA receptors phosphorylation are also similar. We used our in vitro model and sleep-deprived animals to map the metabolic pathways activated by waking. Only a few metabolic pathways were identified, including glycolysis, aminoacid, and lipids. Unexpectedly large increases in lysolipids were found both in vivo after sleep deprivation and in vitro after stimulation, strongly suggesting that sleep might play a major role in reestablishing the neuronal membrane homeostasis. With our in vitro model, the cellular and molecular consequences of sleep and wakefulness can now be investigated in a dish.
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Vecsey CG, Peixoto L, Choi JHK, Wimmer M, Jaganath D, Hernandez PJ, Blackwell J, Meda K, Park AJ, Hannenhalli S, Abel T. Genomic analysis of sleep deprivation reveals translational regulation in the hippocampus. Physiol Genomics 2012; 44:981-91. [PMID: 22930738 PMCID: PMC3472468 DOI: 10.1152/physiolgenomics.00084.2012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 99] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2012] [Accepted: 08/22/2012] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Sleep deprivation is a common problem of considerable health and economic impact in today's society. Sleep loss is associated with deleterious effects on cognitive functions such as memory and has a high comorbidity with many neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders. Therefore, it is crucial to understand the molecular basis of the effect of sleep deprivation in the brain. In this study, we combined genome-wide and traditional molecular biological approaches to determine the cellular and molecular impacts of sleep deprivation in the mouse hippocampus, a brain area crucial for many forms of memory. Microarray analysis examining the effects of 5 h of sleep deprivation on gene expression in the mouse hippocampus found 533 genes with altered expression. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that a prominent effect of sleep deprivation was to downregulate translation, potentially mediated through components of the insulin signaling pathway such as the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), a key regulator of protein synthesis. Consistent with this analysis, sleep deprivation reduced levels of total and phosphorylated mTOR, and levels returned to baseline after 2.5 h of recovery sleep. Our findings represent the first genome-wide analysis of the effects of sleep deprivation on the mouse hippocampus, and they suggest that the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation may be mediated by reductions in protein synthesis via downregulation of mTOR. Because protein synthesis and mTOR activation are required for long-term memory formation, our study improves our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the memory impairments induced by sleep deprivation.
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Abstract
While there is ample agreement that the cognitive role of sleep is explained by sleep-dependent synaptic changes, consensus is yet to be established as to the nature of these changes. Some researchers believe that sleep promotes global synaptic downscaling, leading to a non-Hebbian reset of synaptic weights that is putatively necessary for the acquisition of new memories during ensuing waking. Other investigators propose that sleep also triggers experience-dependent, Hebbian synaptic upscaling able to consolidate recently acquired memories. Here, I review the molecular and physiological evidence supporting these views, with an emphasis on the calcium signaling pathway. I argue that the available data are consistent with sleep promoting experience-dependent synaptic embossing, understood as the simultaneous non-Hebbian downscaling and Hebbian upscaling of separate but complementary sets of synapses, heterogeneously activated at the time of memory encoding and therefore differentially affected by sleep.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sidarta Ribeiro
- Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Natal, Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Cirelli
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53719, USA.
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Abstract
Mechanism is at the heart of understanding, and this chapter addresses underlying brain mechanisms and pathways of cognition and the impact of sleep on these processes, especially those serving learning and memory. This chapter reviews the current understanding of the relationship between sleep/waking states and cognition from the perspective afforded by basic neurophysiological investigations. The extensive overlap between sleep mechanisms and the neurophysiology of learning and memory processes provide a foundation for theories of a functional link between the sleep and learning systems. Each of the sleep states, with its attendant alterations in neurophysiology, is associated with facilitation of important functional learning and memory processes. For rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, salient features such as PGO waves, theta synchrony, increased acetylcholine, reduced levels of monoamines and, within the neuron, increased transcription of plasticity-related genes, cumulatively allow for freely occurring bidirectional plasticity, long-term potentiation (LTP) and its reversal, depotentiation. Thus, REM sleep provides a novel neural environment in which the synaptic remodelling essential to learning and cognition can occur, at least within the hippocampal complex. During non-REM sleep Stage 2 spindles, the cessation and subsequent strong bursting of noradrenergic cells and coincident reactivation of hippocampal and cortical targets would also increase synaptic plasticity, allowing targeted bidirectional plasticity in the neocortex as well. In delta non-REM sleep, orderly neuronal reactivation events in phase with slow wave delta activity, together with high protein synthesis levels, would facilitate the events that convert early LTP to long-lasting LTP. Conversely, delta sleep does not activate immediate early genes associated with de novo LTP. This non-REM sleep-unique genetic environment combined with low acetylcholine levels may serve to reduce the strength of cortical circuits that activate in the ~50% of delta-coincident reactivation events that do not appear in their waking firing sequence. The chapter reviews the results of manipulation studies, typically total sleep or REM sleep deprivation, that serve to underscore the functional significance of the phenomenological associations. Finally, the implications of sleep neurophysiology for learning and memory will be considered from a larger perspective in which the association of specific sleep states with both potentiation or depotentiation is integrated into mechanistic models of cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gina R Poe
- Departments of Anesthesiology and Molecular and Integrative Physiology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
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Romcy-Pereira RN, Erraji-Benchekroun L, Smyrniotopoulos P, Ogawa S, Mello CV, Sibille E, Pavlides C. Sleep-dependent gene expression in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex following long-term potentiation. Physiol Behav 2009; 98:44-52. [PMID: 19389414 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2009.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2008] [Revised: 04/03/2009] [Accepted: 04/09/2009] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The activity-dependent transcription factor zif268 is re-activated in sleep following hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP). However, the activation of secondary genes, possibly involved in modifying local synaptic strengths and ultimately stabilizing memory traces during sleep, has not yet been studied. Here, we investigated changes in hippocampal and cortical gene expression at a time point subsequent to the previously reported initial zif268 re-activation during sleep. Rats underwent unilateral hippocampal LTP and were assigned to SLEEP or AWAKE groups. Eighty minutes after a long rapid-eye-movement sleep (REMS) episode (or an equivalent amount of time for awake group) animals had their hippocampi dissected and processed for gene microarray hybridization. Prefrontal and parietal cortices were also collected for qRT-PCR analysis. The microarray analysis identified 28 up-regulated genes in the hippocampus: 11 genes were enhanced in the LTPed hemisphere of sleep animals; 13 genes were enhanced after sleep, regardless of hemisphere; and 4 genes were enhanced in LTPed hemisphere, regardless of behavioral state. qRT-PCR analysis confirmed the up-regulation of aif-1 and sc-65 during sleep. Moreover, we observed a down-regulation of the purinergic receptor, P2Y4R in the LTP hemisphere of awake animals and a trend for the protein kinase, CaMKI to be up-regulated in the LTP hemisphere of sleep animals. In the prefrontal cortex, we showed a significant LTP-dependent down-regulation of gluR1 and spinophilin specifically during sleep. Zif268 was down-regulated in sleep regardless of the hemisphere. No changes in gene expression were observed in the parietal cortex. Our findings indicate that a set of synaptic plasticity-related genes have their expression modulated during sleep following LTP, which can reflect biochemical events associated with reshaping of synaptic connections in sleep following learning.
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Romcy-Pereira RN, Leite JP, Garcia-Cairasco N. Synaptic plasticity along the sleep-wake cycle: implications for epilepsy. Epilepsy Behav 2009; 14 Suppl 1:47-53. [PMID: 18926929 DOI: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2008.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2008] [Revised: 09/22/2008] [Accepted: 09/23/2008] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Activity-dependent changes in synaptic efficacy (i.e., synaptic plasticity) can alter the way neurons communicate and process information as a result of experience. Synaptic plasticity mechanisms involve both molecular and structural modifications that affect synaptic functioning, either enhancing or depressing neuronal transmission. They include redistribution of postsynaptic receptors, activation of intracellular signaling cascades, and formation/retraction of dendritic spines, among others. During the sleep-wake cycle, as the result of particular neurochemical and neuronal firing modes, distinct oscillatory patterns organize the activity of neuronal populations, modulating synaptic plasticity. Such modulation, for example, has been shown in the visual cortex following sleep deprivation and in the ability to induce hippocampal long-term potentiation during sleep. In epilepsy, synchronized behavioral states tend to contribute to the initiation of paroxystic discharges and are considered more epileptogenic than desynchronized states. Here, we review some of the current understandings of synaptic plasticity changes in wake and sleep states and how sleep may affect epileptic seizures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo N Romcy-Pereira
- Department of Neurology, Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Ribeirão Preto School of Medicine, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
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Romcy-Pereira R, Pavlides C. Distinct modulatory effects of sleep on the maintenance of hippocampal and medial prefrontal cortex LTP. Eur J Neurosci 2004; 20:3453-62. [PMID: 15610178 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2004.03808.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Both human and animal studies support the idea that memory consolidation of waking experiences occurs during sleep. In experimental models, rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep has been shown to be necessary for cortical synaptic plasticity and for the acquisition of spatial and nonspatial memory. Because the hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) play distinct and important roles in memory processing, we sought to determine the role of sleep in the maintenance of long-term potentiation (LTP) in the dentate gyrus (DG) and mPFC of freely behaving rats. Animals were implanted with stimulating and recording electrodes, either in the medial perforant path and DG or CA1 and mPFC, for the recording of field potentials. Following baseline recordings, LTP was induced and the animals were assigned to three different groups: REM sleep-deprived (REMD), total sleep-deprived (TSD) and control which were allowed to sleep (SLEEP). The deprivation protocol lasted for 4 h and the recordings were made during the first hour and at 5, 24 and 48 h following LTP induction. Our results show that REMD impaired the maintenance of late-phase (48-h) LTP in the DG, whereas it enhanced it in the mPFC. Sleep, therefore, could have distinct effects on the consolidation of different forms of memory.
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Srinivasan J, Schmidt WJ. Treatment with alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonist, 2-methoxy idazoxan, protects 6-hydroxydopamine-induced Parkinsonian symptoms in rats: neurochemical and behavioral evidence. Behav Brain Res 2004; 154:353-63. [PMID: 15313023 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2004.03.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2004] [Revised: 03/02/2004] [Accepted: 03/04/2004] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Noradrenaline, not only functions as a synaptic transmitter, but also promotes neural differentiation and regenerative processes. In Parkinson's disease, besides the dopaminergic degeneration, noradrenergic neurons of locus coeruleus origin degenerate as well. Drugs enhancing noradrenergic transmission in the locus coeruleus (e.g. alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonists) have been shown to be neuroprotective against Huntington's and ischemic animal models. However, in Parkinsonian animal models, most of the studies evaluated the worsening of experimental nigral neurodegeneration after locus coeruleus lesions. Here, it has been tested, whether treatment with the selective alpha2-adrenoceptor antagonist, 2-methoxy idazoxan (2.5 mg/kg i.p., twice daily for 5 days), before an experimental lesion to nigra, protects dopaminergic neurodegeneration. Dopaminergic degeneration was produced by 6-hydroxydopamine lesion in the median forebrain bundle. The concentrations of dopamine, 5-hydroxytryptamine and its metabolites were analysed in the various regions of the basal ganglia. The concentrations of noradrenaline and dopamine were measured in the regions innervated by locus coeruleus neurons and in the basal ganglia respectively, after 2-methoxy idazoxan treatment. The Parkinsonian behavior was assessed by catalepsy and activity test. 2-Methoxy idazoxan specifically increased the concentration of noradrenaline in the brain regions, innervated by locus coeruleus neurons. 6-OHDA lesion strongly depleted the concentration of dopamine and its metabolites in the striatum and SN, producing catalepsy and hypoactivity. Multiple treatments with 2-methoxy idazoxan reduced some of the observed neurochemical and behavioral indices of 6-hydroxydopamine-induced Parkinsonism, indicating neuroprotection. Although the mechanism underlying the neuroprotective property remains elusive, the therapeutic usage of alpha2-antagonists might be helpful in slowing the neuronal death and progression of Parkinson's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Srinivasan
- Neuropharmacology, Zoological Institute, University of Tuebingen, Auf der Morgenstelle 28E, 72076 Tuebingen, Germany
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18
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Ribeiro S, Nicolelis MAL. Reverberation, storage, and postsynaptic propagation of memories during sleep. Learn Mem 2004; 11:686-96. [PMID: 15576886 PMCID: PMC534697 DOI: 10.1101/lm.75604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 111] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
In mammals and birds, long episodes of nondreaming sleep ("slow-wave" sleep, SW) are followed by short episodes of dreaming sleep ("rapid-eye-movement" sleep, REM). Both SW and REM sleep have been shown to be important for the consolidation of newly acquired memories, but the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Here we review electrophysiological and molecular data suggesting that SW and REM sleep play distinct and complementary roles on memory consolidation: While postacquisition neuronal reverberation depends mainly on SW sleep episodes, transcriptional events able to promote long-lasting memory storage are only triggered during ensuing REM sleep. We also discuss evidence that the wake-sleep cycle promotes a postsynaptic propagation of memory traces away from the neural sites responsible for initial encoding. Taken together, our results suggest that basic molecular and cellular mechanisms underlie the reverberation, storage, and propagation of memory traces during sleep. We propose that these three processes alone may account for several important properties of memory consolidation over time, such as deeper memory encoding within the cerebral cortex, incremental learning several nights after memory acquisition, and progressive hippocampal disengagement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sidarta Ribeiro
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA.
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19
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Tafti M, Franken P, Dauvilliers Y. Genetic Regulation of Sleep. Sleep 2004. [DOI: 10.1201/9780203496732.ch7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
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20
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Tononi G, Cirelli C. Changes in Brain Gene Expression between Sleep and Wakefulness. Sleep 2004. [DOI: 10.1201/9780203496732.ch11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
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21
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Ribeiro S. [Dream, memory and Freud's reconciliation with the brain]. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PSIQUIATRIA (SAO PAULO, BRAZIL : 1999) 2003; 25 Suppl 2:59-63, 78. [PMID: 14978589 DOI: 10.1590/s1516-44462003000600013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/29/2023]
Abstract
What is the function of dreaming? The vast contribution on dreams made by Freud and Jung has been largely ignored by science, which harshly criticized their approach for the lack of a quantitative method and of testable hypotheses. Here I review a series of experimental results that corroborate two important psychoanalytical insights regarding dreams: 1) that dreams often contain a "day residue" of the preceding waking experience, and 2) that such "residue" includes cognitive and mnemonic activities, therefore leading to a facilitation of learning. In particular, recent data suggests that dreams may play an essential role in memory consolidation, allowing recently-acquired memories to exit the hippocampus and settle in the neocortex. Taken together, these results call for a comprehensive scientific reassessment of the psychoanalytical legacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sidarta Ribeiro
- Departamento de Neurobiologia, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27707, USA.
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22
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Abstract
The hypothesis that sleep promotes learning and memory has long been a subject of active investigation. This hypothesis implies that sleep must facilitate synaptic plasticity in some way, and recent studies have provided evidence for such a function. Our knowledge of both the cellular neurophysiology of sleep states and of the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying synaptic plasticity has expanded considerably in recent years. In this article, we review findings in these areas and discuss possible mechanisms whereby the neurophysiological processes characteristic of sleep states may serve to facilitate synaptic plasticity. We address this issue first on the cellular level, considering how activation of T-type Ca(2+) channels in nonREM sleep may promote either long-term depression or long-term potentiation, as well as how cellular events of REM sleep may influence these processes. We then consider how synchronization of neuronal activity in thalamocortical and hippocampal-neocortical networks in nonREM sleep and REM sleep could promote differential strengthening of synapses according to the degree to which activity in one neuron is synchronized with activity in other neurons in the network. Rather than advocating one specific cellular hypothesis, we have intentionally taken a broad approach, describing a range of possible mechanisms whereby sleep may facilitate synaptic plasticity on the cellular and/or network levels. We have also provided a general review of evidence for and against the hypothesis that sleep does indeed facilitate learning, memory, and synaptic plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joel H Benington
- Department of Biology, St. Bonaventure University, St. Bonaventure, NY 14778, USA
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23
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Molecular genetics, circadian rhythms and sleep. Sleep 2003. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4615-0217-3_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
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24
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Cirelli C, Tononi G. The search for the molecular correlates of sleep and wakefulness. Sleep Med Rev 2001; 5:397-408. [PMID: 12531005 DOI: 10.1053/smrv.2001.0160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
Knowledge of the molecular correlates of sleep and wakefulness is essential if we are to understand the restorative processes occurring during sleep and the cellular mechanisms underlying sleep regulation. In order to determine what molecular changes occur during the sleep-waking cycle, we have recently performed a systematic screening of gene expression in the brain of sleeping, sleep deprived and spontaneously awake rats. Out of the approximately 10 000 genes screened so far, a small minority ( approximately 0.5%) was differentially expressed in the cerebral cortex across behavioral states. Most genes were upregulated in wakefulness and sleep deprivation relative to sleep, while only a few had higher expression in sleep relative to wakefulness and sleep deprivation. Almost all the genes upregulated in sleep, and several genes upregulated in wakefulness and sleep deprivation, did not match any known sequence. Known genes that were upregulated in wakefulness and sleep deprivation could be grouped into functional categories: immediate early genes/transcription factors, genes related to energy metabolism, growth factors/adhesion molecules, chaperones/heat shock proteins, vesicle- and synapse-related genes, neurotransmitter/hormone receptors, neurotransmitter transporters, enzymes, and others. Although the characterization of the molecular correlates of sleep, wakefulness and sleep deprivation is still in progress, it is already apparent that the transition from sleep to waking can affect basic cellular functions such as RNA and protein synthesis, neural plasticity, neurotransmission, and metabolism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Cirelli
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Wisconsin at Madison, Wisconsin, 53719, USA
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25
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Semba K, Pastorius J, Wilkinson M, Rusak B. Sleep deprivation-induced c-fos and junB expression in the rat brain: effects of duration and timing. Behav Brain Res 2001; 120:75-86. [PMID: 11173087 DOI: 10.1016/s0166-4328(00)00362-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Expression of the immediate-early genes (IEGs) c-fos and junB in the rat brain was studied in response to sleep deprivation (SD) starting at four time points during the light phase of a 12:12 light:dark cycle. Animals were confined to slowly rotating wheels for 3 or 6 h in order to prevent sleep. The numbers of c-Fos- and JunB-immunoreactive cells were assessed in seven brain regions previously reported to respond to SD with increased c-fos expression (medial preoptic area (MPA), cortex, anterior and posterior paraventricular thalamic nuclei, amygdala, caudate-putamen, and laterodorsal tegmental nucleus). While c-Fos was induced by SD in all regions studied, there were differences in levels of induction depending on the duration of deprivation and on the timing of the deprivation period during the light phase. The most robust induction occurred in most regions in response to 3-h deprivation periods beginning 3 h into the light phase. A similarly timed peak of induction was observed in the MPA and cortex after 6 h of SD. In two regions, the posterior paraventricular thalamic nucleus and amygdala, 6 h of deprivation induced greater c-Fos immunoreactivity than did 3 h of deprivation, collapsed across all phases tested. Increased JunB immunoreactivity in response to either duration of deprivation was more limited and was significant only in the MPA, cortex, caudate-putamen and amygdala. c-Fos and JunB immunoreactivity in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus was low and similar in control and deprived animals. These results indicate that both duration of prior wakefulness and time of day influence the extent of IEG expression differentially in brain regions responsive to SD. The results also suggest that the posterior paraventricular thalamic nucleus and amygdala might be primarily responsive to length of wakefulness (sleep drive), while the MPA and anterior paraventricular thalamic nucleus might integrate input related to both homeostatic sleep drive and circadian clock influences on sleep regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Semba
- Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, Dalhousie University, B3H 4H7, Halifax, NS, Canada.
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26
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Ribeiro S, Goyal V, Mello CV, Pavlides C. Brain gene expression during REM sleep depends on prior waking experience. Learn Mem 1999; 6:500-8. [PMID: 10541470 PMCID: PMC311304 DOI: 10.1101/lm.6.5.500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 156] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/1999] [Accepted: 08/20/1999] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
In most mammalian species studied, two distinct and successive phases of sleep, slow wave (SW), and rapid eye movement (REM), can be recognized on the basis of their EEG profiles and associated behaviors. Both phases have been implicated in the offline sensorimotor processing of daytime events, but the molecular mechanisms remain elusive. We studied brain expression of the plasticity-associated immediate-early gene (IEG) zif-268 during SW and REM sleep in rats exposed to rich sensorimotor experience in the preceding waking period. Whereas nonexposed controls show generalized zif-268 down-regulation during SW and REM sleep, zif-268 is upregulated during REM sleep in the cerebral cortex and the hippocampus of exposed animals. We suggest that this phenomenon represents a window of increased neuronal plasticity during REM sleep that follows enriched waking experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Ribeiro
- Laboratory of Animal Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York 10021, USA
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27
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Smith GS, Reynolds CF, Pollock B, Derbyshire S, Nofzinger E, Dew MA, Houck PR, Milko D, Meltzer CC, Kupfer DJ. Cerebral glucose metabolic response to combined total sleep deprivation and antidepressant treatment in geriatric depression. Am J Psychiatry 1999; 156:683-9. [PMID: 10327899 DOI: 10.1176/ajp.156.5.683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The treatment of geriatric depression is complicated by a variable and delayed response to antidepressant treatment. The present study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that combined total sleep deprivation and paroxetine treatment would produce a persistent reduction in glucose metabolism in the anterior cingulate cortex similar to that reported after long-term antidepressant treatment. METHOD Six elderly depressed patients who met the DSM-IV criteria for major depressive disorder and six age-matched comparison subjects underwent serial positron emission tomography (PET) studies at baseline, after total sleep deprivation, after recovery sleep (after the initial paroxetine dose), and after 2 weeks of paroxetine treatment (patients only). The PET data were analyzed by using statistical parametric mapping methods. RESULTS The patients' scores on a 13-item version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale were decreased after total sleep deprivation, after recovery sleep, and after 2 weeks of treatment. The Hamilton depression scores of the comparison subjects were not significantly altered. In the patients, the greatest reductions in normalized, relative glucose metabolism after sleep deprivation were observed in the anterior cingulate cortex (Brodmann area 24), and they persisted after recovery sleep and antidepressant treatment. The comparison subjects demonstrated increased metabolism in these areas. CONCLUSIONS Improvement in the patients' depressive symptoms was accompanied by reduced glucose metabolism in the right anterior cingulate cortex and right medial frontal cortex. These preliminary data indicate that in elderly depressed patients, total sleep deprivation may accelerate the clinical and glucose metabolic response to antidepressant treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- G S Smith
- Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, PA 15213, USA.
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28
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Abstract
Compared with our understanding of the electrophysiological correlates of sleep and wakefulness, the search for correlates at the molecular level is still in its infancy. However, the evidence obtained so far supports the hypothesis that reliable molecular correlates do exist. As will be summarized in this review, levels of receptor binding, second messengers and protein phosphorylation differ between sleep and wakefulness. Moreover, compelling data obtained in different animal species suggest that the transition between sleep and wakefulness is accompanied by significant changes in gene expression. Many immediate early genes, transcription factors, plasticity-related genes and mitochondrial genes are expressed at higher levels in wakefulness than in sleep, while a few still unknown genes are up-regulated during sleep. The ongoing systematic screening of gene expression across behavioural states should prove crucial in elucidating the regulatory mechanisms of sleep homeostasis and the functions of sleep.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Cirelli
- The Neurosciences Institute, San Diego, CA 92121, USA.
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29
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Abstract
Molecular biological techniques combined with experimental sleep deprivation have revealed alterations in gene transcriptional activity of several proteins which may mediate the effects of prolonged wakefulness in the brain. During sleep deprivation gene transcription is altered in neuronal systems known to participate in the regulation of vigilance and sleep, ie the norardenergic and cholinergic systems, and several neuropeptides and cytokines. The study of immediate early genes during sleep deprivation has revealed increased transcriptional activity in those brain areas that are active during wakefulness. Systemic search for alterated levels of messenger RNA in sleep-deprived brain has revealed signal transduction proteins and metabolic enzymes which may mediate changes in neuronal function during prolonged wakefulness. The purpose of this article is to give a short overview of those genes whose transcription is affected by sleep deprivation according to the current literature, and to characterize the possible role of these genes in sleep regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Toppila
- Institute of Biomedicine, Department of Physiology, University of Helsinki, Finland.
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30
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Cirelli C, Tononi G. Differences in gene expression between sleep and waking as revealed by mRNA differential display. BRAIN RESEARCH. MOLECULAR BRAIN RESEARCH 1998; 56:293-305. [PMID: 9602159 DOI: 10.1016/s0169-328x(98)00057-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
In order to systematically investigate differences in gene expression between sleep and waking, mRNA differential display was used to examine mRNAs from the cerebral cortex of rats who had been spontaneously asleep, spontaneously awake, or sleep deprived for a period of 3 h. It was found that, while the vast majority of transcripts were expressed at the same level among these three conditions, the expression of a subset of mRNAs was modulated by sleep and waking. Half of these transcripts had known sequences in databases. RNAs expressed at higher levels during waking included those for the transcription factors c-fos, NGFI-A, and rlf, as well as three transcripts encoded by the mitochondrial genome, those for subunit I of cytochrome c oxidase, subunit 2 of NADH dehydrogenase, and 12S rRNA. As shown by in situ hybridization, the level of RNAs encoded by the mitochondrial genome was uniformly higher during waking in many cortical regions and in several extracortical structures. By contrast, mRNA levels corresponding to two mitochondrial protein subunits encoded by the nuclear genome were unchanged. This finding suggests the hypothesis that an increase in the level of mitochondrial RNAs may represent a rapid regulatory response of neural tissue to adapt to the increased metabolic demand of waking with respect to sleep.
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Affiliation(s)
- C Cirelli
- The Neurosciences Institute, 10640 John J. Hopkins Drive, San Diego, CA 92121, USA
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