Sleep and Cognitive Neuroscience

85 East Newton St.
Suite M-902
Boston, MA 02118

Research in The Laboratory for Sleep and Cognitive Neuroscience is focused on aspects of the cellular and neurobiological basis of sleep. Our interests are mainly in the mechanisms and regulation of rapid eye movement sleep (REM) and in the role it plays in learning, memory and behavior and more recently anxiety. Studies are conducted in the rat, a species whose sleep organization is similar to that of human beings. We utilize a number of different methods in our work and they are organized into three approaches. First are the basic neuroanatomical methods for light and fluorescent microscopy. These consist of conventional histological and staining methods, tract tracing cellular morphology as well as immunohistochemistry. Markers such as c-fos, BDNF and P-CREB as welll as GAD and CHAT permit identification of behaviorally active areas of the brain, and brainstem. Local circuitry can be evaluated using tract-tracing methods including common anterograde and retrograde neuronal tract tracing material such as biotinylated dextran, HRP and other transported molecules. We have image analysis capabilities as well as expertise in unbiased stereology and mapping and 3-D reconstruction of brain tissues that can be employed for quantification studies.

The second approach we employ is state-of-the-art, chronic multielectrode polysomnography combined with pharmacological manipulations of the central nervous system. We routinely collect data from cerebral cortex, brainstem, neck muscles, and hippocampus to document sleep states. Thus we can record multiple electrophysiological signs of sleep and wakefulness from freely moving behaving animals under normal and experimental conditions. Normal sleep-wake habits are sensitive to many external influences, like stress, learning, anxiety, memory, medications etc. Recognizing perturbations in the normal sleep-wake cycle is a very useful vehicle for use in a variety of experimental conditions. We are able to simultaneously record sleep signals from as many as 8 animals and because it is recorded digitally, we can conveniently record sleep and behavioral data over considerably long periods of time. Once captured, these data are available for off-line analysis and replay. By manipulating the animal chemically or behaviorally and then “scoring” their sleep records according to the percentage of time spent in the different stages of sleep it is possible to explore the effects of drugs or behavior on sleep as well as exploring the basic mechanisms of sleep itself. We incorporate computerized standard behavioral paradigms like the Elevated Plus Maze, Two Way Active Avoidance, Shuttle box, and Contextual Learning in our studies.

Our third approach is molecular biology. We are able to perform analyses related to the identification, concentration and distribution of molecular markers like cFOS, BDNF, Arc, Egr-1 and different neurotransmitters. Our techniques include Western Blots, ELISA, PCR, RTPCR and others. Through these methods we an analyze changes in the gene expression of these compounds that may be the result of learning, pharmacological or behavioral manipulations.

Our facilities are located on the 9th and 10th floors of the Solomon Carter Fuller building as well as the 8th floor in the CABR building. Our lab personnel include Dr. Subimal Datta (Professor), Dr. Donald Siwek (Assistant Professor) and Dr. Edward Stack (Research Instructor) and a team of skilled technical assistants.

Recent Publications

Improvement of two-way active avoidance memory requires protein kinase a activation and brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression in the dorsal hippocampus.
Datta S, Siwek DF, Huang MP., J Mol Neurosci. 2009 Jul;38(3):257-64. Epub 2009 May 6.

Identification of Cholinergic and non-cholinergic neurons in the pons expressing phosphorylated cAMP Response Element-Binding Protein (pCREB) as a function of Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep.
Datta, S, Siwek, D and Stack, E.,  J. Neuroscience (accepted for publication).