Restoring Access to Memories Lost as a Result of Sleep Deprivation
Abstract
Sleep loss is a common problem in our modern 24-7 society due to economic and social demands, and it is becoming increasingly clear that the deprivation of sleep has a major impact on our body and brain. This is of particular concern for the Air Force-Department of Defense in which various positions and tasks demand long or irregular working hours with little sleep. To that end, here we propose to intervene with and prevent the effects of sleep deprivation on cognition and behavior. More specifically, sleep deprivation is detrimental for memory processes that depend on the hippocampus, a brain structure that is essential for associations between specific contexts and experiences. Our preliminary data suggests, in contrast to general beliefs, that hippocampus-dependent memory deficits associated with sleep deprivation are not a result of memory loss, but affect the accessibility and retrievability of a memory. The physical basis of such memories (or engrams ) can be experimentally manipulated using optogenetic approaches based on expression of light-sensitive proteins such as Channelrhodopsin-2 (ChR2) in neurons specifically activated during memory formation. These tagged memories can be retrieved artificially by activating ChR2 using optical stimulation without the need to expose animals to the context in which the memories were originally formed. Thus, we propose a series of studies to determine how to 1) retrieve information from the brain that was stored suboptimally in the brain as a result of sleep deprivation, 2) re-encode this information enabling natural recall, and 3) prime the brain to make memory consolidation resilient to future sleep deprivation episodes. In addition to the use of state-of-the-art optogenetic approaches, we will use FDA-approved drugs to promote memory accessibility. As these pharmacological reagents are approved for human consumption, our fundamental studies will form a fundamental basis for future memory research in mammals.
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Mar 07, 2023
- Source ID
- FA95502110310
Entities
People
- Steve Ramirez
Organizations
- Air Force Office of Scientific Research
- Boston University
- United States Air Force