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Samson DR, Clerget A, Abbas N, Senese J, Sarma MS, Lew-Levy S, Mabulla IA, Mabulla AZP, Miegakanda V, Borghese F, Henckaerts P, Schwartz S, Sterpenich V, Gettler LT, Boyette A, Crittenden AN, Perogamvros L. Evidence for an emotional adaptive function of dreams: a cross-cultural study. Sci Rep 2023; 13:16530. [PMID: 37783728 PMCID: PMC10545663 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43319-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The function of dreams is a longstanding scientific research question. Simulation theories of dream function, which are based on the premise that dreams represent evolutionary past selective pressures and fitness improvement through modified states of consciousness, have yet to be tested in cross-cultural populations that include small-scale forager societies. Here, we analyze dream content with cross-cultural comparisons between the BaYaka (Rep. of Congo) and Hadza (Tanzania) foraging groups and Global North populations, to test the hypothesis that dreams in forager groups serve a more effective emotion regulation function due to their strong social norms and high interpersonal support. Using a linear mixed effects model we analyzed 896 dreams from 234 individuals across these populations, recorded using dream diaries. Dream texts were processed into four psychosocial constructs using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC-22) dictionary. The BaYaka displayed greater community-oriented dream content. Both the BaYaka and Hadza exhibited heightened threat dream content, while, at the same time, the Hadza demonstrated low negative emotions in their dreams. The Global North Nightmare Disorder group had increased negative emotion content, and the Canadian student sample during the COVID-19 pandemic displayed the highest anxiety dream content. In conclusion, this study supports the notion that dreams in non-clinical populations can effectively regulate emotions by linking potential threats with non-fearful contexts, reducing anxiety and negative emotions through emotional release or catharsis. Overall, this work contributes to our understanding of the evolutionary significance of this altered state of consciousness.
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Affiliation(s)
- David R Samson
- Sleep and Human Evolution Lab, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada.
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, 3359 Mississauga Road, Mississauga, ON, L5L 1C6, Canada.
| | - Alice Clerget
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Noor Abbas
- Sleep and Human Evolution Lab, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Jeffrey Senese
- Sleep and Human Evolution Lab, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Canada
| | - Mallika S Sarma
- School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Sheina Lew-Levy
- Department of Human Behavior, Ecology and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Ibrahim A Mabulla
- Department of Archaeology and Heritage, Institute of Resource Assessment, University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Audax Z P Mabulla
- Department of Archaeology and Heritage, Institute of Resource Assessment, University of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania
| | - Valchy Miegakanda
- Laboratoire National de Santé Publique, Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo
| | - Francesca Borghese
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Pauline Henckaerts
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Sophie Schwartz
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Virginie Sterpenich
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Lee T Gettler
- Department of Anthropology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Adam Boyette
- Department of Human Behavior, Ecology and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | | | - Lampros Perogamvros
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
- Department of Psychiatry, Center for Sleep Medicine, University Hospitals of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
- Department of Psychiatry, Center for Sleep Medicine, 2 Chemin du Petit-Bel-Air, 1226 Thônex, Switzerland.
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2
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Schwartz S, Clerget A, Perogamvros L. Enhancing imagery rehearsal therapy for nightmares with targeted memory reactivation. Curr Biol 2022; 32:4808-4816.e4. [PMID: 36306786 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.09.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Revised: 07/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Nightmare disorder (ND) is characterized by dreams with strong negative emotions occurring during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. ND is mainly treated by imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT), where the patients are asked to change the negative story line of their nightmare to a more positive one. We here used targeted memory reactivation (TMR) during REM sleep to strengthen IRT-related memories and accelerate remission of ND. Thirty-six patients with ND were asked to perform an initial IRT session and, while they generated a positive outcome of their nightmare, half of the patients were exposed to a sound (TMR group), while no such pairing took place for the other half (control group). During the next 2 weeks, all patients performed IRT every evening at home and were exposed to the sound during REM sleep with a wireless headband, which automatically detected sleep stages. The frequency of nightmares per week at 2 weeks was used as the primary outcome measure. We found that the TMR group had less frequent nightmares and more positive dream emotions than the control group after 2 weeks of IRT and a sustained decrease of nightmares after 3 months. By demonstrating the effectiveness of TMR during sleep to potentiate therapy, these results have clinical implications for the management of ND, with relevance to other psychiatric disorders too. Additionally, these findings show that TMR applied during REM sleep can modulate emotions in dreams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophie Schwartz
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Alice Clerget
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Lampros Perogamvros
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland; Center for Sleep Medicine, Geneva University Hospitals, 1225 Geneva, Switzerland; Department of Psychiatry, Geneva University Hospitals, 1225 Geneva, Switzerland.
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3
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Abstract
The phenomenon of dreaming about the laboratory when participating in a sleep study is common. The content of such dreams draws upon episodic memory fragments of the participant's lab experience, generally, experimenters, electrodes, the lab setting, and experimental tasks. However, as common as such dreams are, they have rarely been given a thorough quantitative or qualitative treatment. Here we assessed 528 dreams (N = 343 participants) collected in a Montreal sleep lab to 1) evaluate state and trait factors related to such dreams, and 2) investigate the phenomenology of lab incorporations using a new scoring system. Lab incorporations occurred in over a third (35.8%) of all dreams and were especially likely to occur in REM sleep (44.2%) or from morning naps (48.4%). They tended to be related to higher depression scores, but not to sex, nightmare-proneness or anxiety. Common themes associated with lab incorporation were: Meta-dreaming, including lucid dreams and false awakenings (40.7%), Sensory incorporations (27%), Wayfinding to, from or within the lab (24.3%), Sleep as performance (19.6%), Friends/Family in the lab (15.9%) and Being an object of observation (12.2%). Finally, 31.7% of the lab incorporation dreams included relative projections into a near future (e.g., the experiment having been completed), but very few projections into the past (2.6%). Results clarify sleep stage and sleep timing factors associated with dreamed lab incorporations. Phenomenological findings further reveal both the typical and unique ways in which lab memory elements are incorporated de novo into dreaming. Identified themes point to frequent social and skillful dream scenarios that entail monitoring of one's current state (in the lab) and projection of the self into dream environments elaborated around local space and time. The findings have implications for understanding fundamental dream formation mechanisms but also for appreciating both the advantages and methodological pitfalls of conducting laboratory-based dream collection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Picard-Deland
- Dream & Nightmare Laboratory, Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
- Department of Neuroscience, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Tore Nielsen
- Dream & Nightmare Laboratory, Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry and Addictology, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - Michelle Carr
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York, United States of America
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Amunts J, Camilleri JA, Eickhoff SB, Patil KR, Heim S, von Polier GG, Weis S. Comprehensive verbal fluency features predict executive function performance. Sci Rep 2021; 11:6929. [PMID: 33767208 PMCID: PMC7994566 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-85981-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Semantic verbal fluency (sVF) tasks are commonly used in clinical diagnostic batteries as well as in a research context. When performing sVF tasks to assess executive functions (EFs) the sum of correctly produced words is the main measure. Although previous research indicates potentially better insights into EF performance by the use of finer grained sVF information, this has not yet been objectively evaluated. To investigate the potential of employing a finer grained sVF feature set to predict EF performance, healthy monolingual German speaking participants (n = 230) were tested with a comprehensive EF test battery and sVF tasks, from which features including sum scores, error types, speech breaks and semantic relatedness were extracted. A machine learning method was applied to predict EF scores from sVF features in previously unseen subjects. To investigate the predictive power of the advanced sVF feature set, we compared it to the commonly used sum score analysis. Results revealed that 8 / 14 EF tests were predicted significantly using the comprehensive sVF feature set, which outperformed sum scores particularly in predicting cognitive flexibility and inhibitory processes. These findings highlight the predictive potential of a comprehensive evaluation of sVF tasks which might be used as diagnostic screening of EFs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Amunts
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7 Brain and Behaviour), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany.
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich-Heine University, Moorenstr. 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany.
| | - Julia A Camilleri
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7 Brain and Behaviour), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich-Heine University, Moorenstr. 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Simon B Eickhoff
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7 Brain and Behaviour), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich-Heine University, Moorenstr. 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Kaustubh R Patil
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7 Brain and Behaviour), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich-Heine University, Moorenstr. 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Stefan Heim
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1 Structural and functional organization of the brain), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy und Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Georg G von Polier
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7 Brain and Behaviour), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main, Deutschordenstraße 50, 60528, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Neuenhofer Weg 21, 52074, Aachen, Germany
| | - Susanne Weis
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-7 Brain and Behaviour), Forschungszentrum Jülich, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str, 52428, Jülich, Germany
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Heinrich-Heine University, Moorenstr. 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
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Marquis LP, Julien SH, Daneault V, Blanchette-Carrière C, Paquette T, Carr M, Soucy JP, Montplaisir J, Nielsen T. Local Neuronal Synchronization in Frequent Nightmare Recallers and Healthy Controls: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:645255. [PMID: 33815047 PMCID: PMC8012764 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.645255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Nightmares are highly dysphoric dreams that are well-remembered upon awakening. Frequent nightmares have been associated with psychopathology and emotional dysregulation, yet their neural mechanisms remain largely unknown. Our neurocognitive model posits that nightmares reflect dysfunction in a limbic-prefrontal circuit comprising medial prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices, hippocampus, and amygdala. However, there is a paucity of studies that used brain imaging to directly test the neural correlates of nightmares. One such study compared the regional homogeneity (ReHo) of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging blood-oxygen level-dependent signals between frequent nightmare recallers and controls. The main results were greater regional homogeneity in the left anterior cingulate cortex and right inferior parietal lobule for the nightmare recallers than for the controls. In the present study, we aimed to document the ReHo correlates of frequent nightmares using several nightmare severity measures. We acquired resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data from 18 frequent nightmare recallers aged 18-35 (3 males and 15 females) and 18 age- and sex-matched controls, as well as retrospective and prospective disturbed dreaming frequency estimates and scores on the Nightmare Distress Questionnaire. While there were inconsistent results for our different analyses (group comparisons, correlational analyses for frequency estimates/Nightmare Distress scores), our results suggest that nightmares are associated with altered ReHo in frontal (medial prefrontal and inferior frontal), parietal, temporal and occipital regions, as well as some subcortical regions (thalamus). We also found a positive correlation between retrospective disturbed dreaming frequency estimates and ReHo values in the hippocampus. These findings are mostly in line with a recent SPECT study from our laboratory. Our results point to the possibility that a variety of regions, including but not limited to the limbic-prefrontal circuit of our neurocognitive model, contribute to nightmare formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louis-Philippe Marquis
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Sarah-Hélène Julien
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Véronique Daneault
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Cloé Blanchette-Carrière
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Tyna Paquette
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Michelle Carr
- Department of Psychiatry, Sleep & Neurophysiology Research Laboratory, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, United States
| | | | - Jacques Montplaisir
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Tore Nielsen
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
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Carr M, Summers R, Bradshaw C, Newton C, Ellis L, Johnston E, Blagrove M. Frontal Brain Activity and Subjective Arousal During Emotional Picture Viewing in Nightmare Sufferers. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:585574. [PMID: 33117126 PMCID: PMC7561419 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.585574] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2020] [Accepted: 09/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Nightmares are intensely negative dreams that awaken the dreamer. Frequent nightmares are thought to reflect an executive deficit in regulating arousal. Within a diathesis-stress framework, this arousal is specific to negative contexts, though a differential susceptibility framework predicts elevated arousal in response to both negative and positive contexts. The current study tested these predictions by assessing subjective arousal and changes in frontal oxyhemoglobin (oxyHB) concentrations during negative and positive picture-viewing in nightmare sufferers (NM) and control subjects (CTL). 27 NM and 27 CTL subjects aged 18–35 rated subjective arousal on a 1–9 scale following sequences of negative, neutral and positive images; changes in oxyHB were measured by Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (NIRS) using a 2 × 4 template on the frontal pole. Participants also completed the Highly Sensitive Person Scale, a trait marker for differential susceptibility; and completed a dream diary reporting negative and positive dream emotionality. The NM group had higher trait sensitivity, yet higher ratings of negative but not positive emotion in diary dreams. NM compared to CTL subjects reported higher subjective arousal in response to picture-viewing regardless of valence. Dysphoric dream distress, measured prospectively, was negatively associated with frontal activation when viewing negative pictures. Results suggest NM sufferers are highly sensitive to images regardless of valence according to subjective measures, and that there is a neural basis to level of trait and prospective nightmare distress. Future longitudinal or intervention studies should further explore positive emotion sensitivity and imagery in NM sufferers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Carr
- Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Richard Summers
- Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Ceri Bradshaw
- Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Courtney Newton
- Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Leslie Ellis
- The International Focusing Institute, Nyack, NY, United States
| | - Erin Johnston
- Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | - Mark Blagrove
- Department of Psychology, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
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Marquis LP, Julien SH, Baril AA, Blanchette-Carrière C, Paquette T, Carr M, Soucy JP, Montplaisir J, Nielsen T. Nightmare Severity Is Inversely Related to Frontal Brain Activity During Waking State Picture Viewing. J Clin Sleep Med 2019; 15:253-264. [PMID: 30736883 PMCID: PMC6374093 DOI: 10.5664/jcsm.7628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Revised: 10/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/24/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
STUDY OBJECTIVES Growing evidence suggests that nightmares have considerable adverse effects on waking behavior, possibly by increasing post-sleep negative emotions. Dysphoric reactions to nightmares are one component of nightmare severity for which the neural correlates are unknown. Here, we investigate possible neural correlates of nightmare severity in a sample of individuals who frequently recall nightmares. METHODS Our principal measure of nightmare severity is nightmare distress as indexed by the Nightmare Distress Questionnaire (NDQ), and secondary measures are retrospective and prospective estimates of frequency of recalling dysphoric dreams (DD). We used high-resolution technetium 99m ethyl cysteinate dimer single photon emission computed tomography to assess regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) while 18 individuals who were frequent nightmare recallers viewed negative and neutral pictures from the International Affective Picture System. We correlated rCBF with NDQ scores and DD recall frequency estimates. RESULTS Negative correlations were observed between NDQ scores and rCBF during negative picture viewing in bilateral insula and anterior cingulate, right medial frontal gyrus, bilateral superior temporal gyrus, right inferior frontal and precentral gyri, and bilateral putamen. Retrospective DD recall correlated with rCBF activity primarily in regions overlapping those related to NDQ scores. Prospective DD recall was only weakly related to rCBF. Results for the neutral condition overlapped partially with those for the negative condition; in particular, NDQ and retrospective DD recall were related to rCBF in medial prefrontal and anterior cingulate gyri. CONCLUSIONS Results point to a possible overlap in brain mechanisms involved in nightmare dysphoria (during sleep) and distress (during wakefulness) among individuals who frequently recall nightmares. They provide partial support for a neurocognitive model of nightmares. COMMENTARY A commentary on this article appears in this issue on page 179.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louis-Philippe Marquis
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Sarah-Hélène Julien
- Department of Psychology, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Andrée-Ann Baril
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Cloé Blanchette-Carrière
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Tyna Paquette
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Michelle Carr
- Sleep Laboratory, Swansea University, Swansea, United Kingdom
| | | | - Jacques Montplaisir
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Tore Nielsen
- Center for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, CIUSSS-NÎM – Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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Perogamvros L, Park HD, Bayer L, Perrault AA, Blanke O, Schwartz S. Increased heartbeat-evoked potential during REM sleep in nightmare disorder. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2019; 22:101701. [PMID: 30739843 PMCID: PMC6370851 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2019.101701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2018] [Revised: 12/13/2018] [Accepted: 01/28/2019] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Nightmares are characterized by the experience of strong negative emotions occurring mainly during REM sleep. Some people suffer from nightmare disorder, which is defined by the repeated occurrence of nightmares and by significant distress in wakefulness. Yet, whether frequent nightmares relate to a general increase in emotional reactivity or arousal during sleep remains unclear. To address this question, we recorded heartbeat-evoked potentials (HEPs) during wakefulness, NREM and REM sleep in patients with nightmare disorder and healthy participants. The HEP represents a cortical (EEG) response to the heartbeat and indexes brain-body interactions, such as interoceptive processing and intrinsic levels of arousal. HEP amplitude is typically increased during states of high emotional arousal and motivation, and is decreased in depression. Here we compared the amplitude of HEPs between nightmare patients and healthy controls separately during AWAKE, NREM, REM periods, and found higher HEP amplitude in nightmare patients compared to healthy controls over a cluster of frontal regions only during REM sleep. This effect was not paralleled by any group difference in cardiac control measures (e.g. heart rate variability, interbeat interval). These findings corroborate the notion that nightmares are essentially a REM pathology and suggest that increased emotional arousal during REM sleep, as measured by HEP, is a physiological condition responsible for frequent nightmares. This result also supports that HEP may be used as a biomarker of increased emotional and sensory processing during REM sleep in these patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lampros Perogamvros
- Center for Sleep Medicine, Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medical Specialties, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland; Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland.
| | - Hyeong-Dong Park
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Laurence Bayer
- Center for Sleep Medicine, Division of Pulmonology, Department of Medical Specialties, Geneva University Hospitals, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Aurore A Perrault
- Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Olaf Blanke
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Geneva, Switzerland; Department of Neurology, University of Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Sophie Schwartz
- Department of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
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9
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Sleep spindle and psychopathology characteristics of frequent nightmare recallers. Sleep Med 2018; 50:113-131. [DOI: 10.1016/j.sleep.2017.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2017] [Accepted: 10/02/2017] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
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