Behavioral Neurobiology Commons^™

The Consolidation Of Memory Associations, Kyle A. Kainec

Doctoral Dissertations

Creating memories is a fundamental challenge for the human brain. To create memories, defining features of experiences must be stored distinguishably without forgetting other memories. Memory associations represent co-occurring features and defining features across experiences. Memory associations are represented as networks of information that are stored in the brain. New memory associations are encoded during experiences and can be used to update existing memory associations during offline intervals. However, the mechanisms that underlie how encoded memory associations are stored within existing networks during offline intervals remains unclear. The experiments in this dissertation address a significant theoretical gap in understanding the …

Sleep Duration Is Associated With Caudate Volume And Executive Function, Nicole Jones

Honors Theses

The ineligible role of the caudate nucleus in sleep has been implicated throughout multiple scientific studies. Previous literature has shown that greater caudate volume is associated with longer habitual sleep duration in older adults- ranging from 55 years of age and up. However, the association between sleep duration and caudate volume remains unknown in the younger population. In this study, we examined the caudate volume in youth to older adults (10 to 85 years old) with a greater sample size (N=464) to increase statistical power. The volumetric size of the caudate nucleus showed significantly positive association with habitual sleep duration, …

Regulation Of Activity Patterns In Astyanax Mexicanus Cavefish, Udodirim Nwosu

Theses

Organisms commonly modulate their behavioral activity in relation to the 24-hour solar cycle. This modulation of behavior is driven by a combination of responses to external cues in the environment, such as light/dark visual signals, and internal pattern generators that can persist in the absence of external cues. However, there are animals that live in caves or in the deep sea that are isolated from solar circadian cues. How these animals regulate their behavioral activity in relation to external and internal rhythms is an open question in neuroscience that may help us to understand the mechanisms that other animals, including …

Sleep Modifications In A Drosophila Melanogaster Model Of Fragile X Syndrome, Morgan Mclaughlin

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by intellectual disabilities, disruptions in sleep, and autism in humans. Mutations in Fragile X Mental Retardation gene 1 (FMR1), which codes for a protein that modifies the expression of many target proteins, are primarily responsible for this disorder. Genetic modifications of FMR1 can increase or decrease the overall amount of sleep in humans. A potential pharmaceutical target of FXS is dopamine, a critical neurotransmitter in the regulation of sleep and wakefulness. In fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) dopamine has been shown to alter sleep. The mushroom body, a structure in …

Let It Rest: Sleep And Health As Positive Correlates Of Forgiveness Of Others And Self-Forgiveness, Loren Toussaint, Andrew J. Gall, Alyssa Cheadle, David R. Williams

Faculty Publications

Objective: The present study examined forgiveness of others, self-forgiveness, sleep, and health in a nationally representative sample of United States adults. It was hypothesised that sleep would mediate the associations of forgiveness of others and self-forgiveness with health.

Design: A nationally representative survey of 1,423 United States adults.

Main Outcome Measures: Measures included forgiveness of others, self-forgiveness, sleep quantity, sleep quality, psychological distress, life satisfaction, and self-rated physical health.

Results: Forgiveness of others (β = .20, p < .001) and self-forgiveness (β = .11, p < .01) were associated with sleep and forgiveness of others (β = .24, p < .001) and self-forgiveness (β = .27, p < .001) were associated with health. Sleep was associated with health (β = .45, p < .001) and also acted as a mediator of the associations of forgiveness of others (β = .09, p < .01) and self-forgiveness (β = .05, p < .01) with health.

Conclusions: Forgiveness of others and self-forgiveness may attenuate emotions such as anger, regret, and rumination and provide …

Examining The Neuronal Dopaminergic Pathway Underlying Sleep Behavior And Related Dopamine Sleep Disorders, Mary Beth Putz

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The human brain is an extremely complex organ with approximately 100 billion different neurons that are constantly sending and receiving messages. These messages are sent using the chemical messengers of the brain: neurotransmitters and neuromodulators. Mechanisms of neural control of sleep are substantially conserved across species. Evidence from multiple animal models including flies, zebrafish, and mice shows that the arousal, or wake phase, is regulated by conserved neuromodulators such as dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. Since these neurotransmitter systems are distributed throughout the brain and sub-serve many functions in addition to sleep, the precise circuit mechanisms by which these neurotransmitters regulate …

Identification Of Novel Sleep Related Genes From Large Scale Phenotyping Experiments In Mice, Shreyas Joshi

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

Humans spend a third of their lives sleeping but very little is known about the physiological and genetic mechanisms controlling sleep. Increased data from sleep phenotyping studies in mouse and other species, genetic crosses, and gene expression databases can all help improve our understanding of the process. Here, we present analysis of our own sleep data from the large-scale phenotyping program at The Jackson Laboratory (JAX), to identify the best gene candidates and phenotype predictors for influencing sleep traits.

The original knockout mouse project (KOMP) was a worldwide collaborative effort to produce embryonic stem (ES) cell lines with one of …

The Relationship Between Sleep, Working Memory, And Decision Making In Young And Old Adult Populations, Melissa G. Merz

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Sleep is known to influence basic tasks concerning working memory, reaction time and executive functioning (Silva, Wang, Ronda, Wyatt, & Duffy, 2010; Nebes, Buysse, Halligan, Houck, & Monk, 2009). However, the amount that sleep influences these functions varies from study to study possibly due to differences in age and task design. Aim 1A of this study is to determine if sleep quality affects working memory. Aim 1B of this study is to determine if age affects sleep quality and working memory in comparison of young and old adult populations. Finally, Aim 2 of this study is to determine if there …

The Contribution Of The Pineal Gland On Daily Rhythms And Masking In Diurnal Grass Rats, Arvicanthis Niloticus, Dorela D. Shuboni, Amna A. Agha, Thomas K. H. Groves, Andrew J. Gall

Faculty Publications

Melatonin is a hormone rhythmically secreted at night by the pineal gland in vertebrates. In diurnal mammals, melatonin is present during the inactive phase of the rest/activity cycle, and in primates it directly facilitates sleep and decreases body temperature. However, the role of the pineal gland for the promotion of sleep at night has not yet been studied in non-primate diurnal mammalian species. Here, the authors directly examined the hypothesis that the pineal gland contributes to diurnality in Nile grass rats by decreasing activity and increasing sleep at night, and that this could occur via effects on circadian mechanisms or …

The Effects Of Chronic Partial Sleep Deprivation And Chronic Voluntary Alcohol Consumption On Δfos B Accumulation, Kristian Ponder

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

The present study explores the relation between sleep restriction and alcohol use and the neural substrates that result from chronic behaviors. Accumulation of the transcription factors ΔFosB is suggested as a possible outcome of chronic behaviors, such as addiction. Sleep is discussed as possible mediating factor in the relationship between ΔFosB and chronic alcohol consumption. There were four experimental groups in this study: Control (C), Sleep Deprivation only (SD), Alcohol Exposure only (AO), and both sleep deprivation and alcohol exposure (B). Levels of ΔFosB accumulation in the Nucleus Accumbens (NAc) revealed a significant main effect of sleep deprivation, but no …

A Neural Circuit Of Appetite Control In C. Elegans, Kristen C. Davis

Theses and Dissertations

Feeding behavior and its associated neural circuitry is complex and intricate in mammalian systems, however, a simple model organism, such as C. elegans provides a more basic approach to understand factors and molecules involved. The fruit-dwelling nematode provides a unique set of resources; it only consists of 959 cells, 302 of which are neurons. In addition, each neuron’s connectivity and position within the worm is known and consistent between animals. Conservation of neurotransmitters and biochemical processes add to this impressive list. These resources provide an excellent background to address feeding behavior and the neural structures governing it.

Feeding behavior in …

Experimental-Computational Analysis Of Vigilance Dynamics For Applications In Sleep And Epilepsy, Farid Yaghouby

Theses and Dissertations--Biomedical Engineering

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder characterized by recurrent seizures. Sleep problems can cooccur with epilepsy, and adversely affect seizure diagnosis and treatment. In fact, the relationship between sleep and seizures in individuals with epilepsy is a complex one. Seizures disturb sleep and sleep deprivation aggravates seizures. Antiepileptic drugs may also impair sleep quality at the cost of controlling seizures. In general, particular vigilance states may inhibit or facilitate seizure generation, and changes in vigilance state can affect the predictability of seizures. A clear understanding of sleep-seizure interactions will therefore benefit epilepsy care providers and improve quality of life in patients. …

Post-Traumatic Sleep Following Diffuse Traumatic Brain Injury, Rachel K. Rowe

Theses and Dissertations--Neuroscience

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a major cause of death and disability throughout the world with few pharmacological treatments available for individuals who suffer from neurological morbidities associated with TBI. Cellular and molecular pathological processes initiated at the time of injury develop into neurological impairments, with chronic sleep disorders (insomnia, hypersomnolence) being among the somatic, cognitive and emotional neurological impairments. Immediately post-injury, TBI patients report excessive daytime sleepiness, however, discordant opinions suggest that individuals should not be allowed to sleep or should be frequently awoken following brain injury. To provide adequate medical care, it is imperative to understand the role …