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2022 Fiscal Year Research-status Report

Revealing the Role of Postnatal Theta Rhythm in Establishing Memory Consolidation Mechanism during REM Sleep

Research Project

Project/Area Number 21K06419
Research InstitutionUniversity of Tsukuba

Principal Investigator

Kumar Deependra  筑波大学, 国際統合睡眠医科学研究機構, 研究員 (20747696)

Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha) 船戸 弘正  筑波大学, 国際統合睡眠医科学研究機構, 客員教授 (90363118)
Project Period (FY) 2021-04-01 – 2024-03-31
KeywordsSleep / memory / Theta / hippocampus / neonates / TRAP2 / Dreamless / Fear expression
Outline of Annual Research Achievements

We found dreamless mice display low freezing behavior during fear conditioning, which could be due to chronic loss of REM sleep. Early data indicates their REM sleep duration gets further shortened during the postconditioning sleep, which can influence the memory consolidation. Furthermore, hippocampal theta shows low spectral power during REM sleep, that required for memory storage.

Indeed dreamless show low-freezing behavior one day or two weeks later. Dreamless shows a larger loss of memory at two weeks time, indicating faster memory decay compared with wild type littermates . Upon remote memory retrieval, the number of c-fos positive cells in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), a center for remote memory storage, was low in dreamless, which agrees with lower freezing behavior.

Current Status of Research Progress
Current Status of Research Progress

1: Research has progressed more than it was originally planned.

Reason

Customized tetrode required to measure LFP in the neonatal brain is established.

Strategy for Future Research Activity

In mutant mice, LFP will be measured simultaneously from the medial septum (theta generator) and hippocampus (prominent theta in REM) to narrow the region and cause-related with low theta in mutant mice.
Theta synchronicity between the hippocampus, amygdala, and medial prefrontal cortex is essential for memory task performance. LFP will be measured during fear learning, sleep, and memory retrieval period.
Can theta wave enhancement rescue fear memory in mutant mice? To test, dreamless mutants expressing channelrhodopsin in medial septum cholinergic neurons will receive laser light to induce hippocampal theta during task performance and sleep artificially.
How does theta enhancement affect the activity of learning tag cells? Imaging and optogenetics techniques will be combined to understand theta's role in the consolidation mechanism.

Causes of Carryover

We need to procure consumables items for optogenetics and LFP/EEG/EMG surgery. For example, optic fibre, platinum-iridium wire for preparing tetrode, miniature EEG screw for neonates, dental cement and solution, IC sockets, etc.
The imaging experiment requires a sufficient number of green lenses (inscopix) and baseplates, which are not reusable. Up to three dummy microscopes are needed for habituation purposes.
Antibodies (RFP, FOS, GFP, DCx, and ChAT) for immunohistochemistry and Tamoxifen for tagging activated cell is required. Several types of primers for genotyping various transgenic mice are needed.

  • Research Products

    (2 results)

All 2022

All Journal Article (1 results) (of which Int'l Joint Research: 1 results,  Peer Reviewed: 1 results) Presentation (1 results) (of which Int'l Joint Research: 1 results)

  • [Journal Article] Kinase signalling in excitatory neurons regulates sleep quantity and depth2022

    • Author(s)
      Kim SJ, Hotta-Hirashima N, Asano F, Kitazono T, Iwasaki K, Nakata S, Komiya H, Asama N, Matsuoka T, Fujiyama T, Ikkyu A, Kakizaki M, Kanno S, Choi J, Kumar D, Tsukamoto T, Elhosainy A, Mizuno S, Miyazaki S, Tsuneoka Y, Sugiyama F, Takahashi S, Hayashi Y, Muratani M, Liu Q, Miyoshi C, Yanagisawa M, Funato H.
    • Journal Title

      Nature

      Volume: 612 Pages: 512-518

    • DOI

      10.1038/s41586-022-05450-1

    • Peer Reviewed / Int'l Joint Research
  • [Presentation] NALCN haploinsufficiency causes memory loss in adolescent mice2022

    • Author(s)
      Deependra Kumar , Tomoyuki Fujiyama , Takeshi Kanda , Chika Miyoshi , Miyo Kakizaki , Masanori Sakaguchi , Hiromasa Funato , Masashi Yanagisawa
    • Organizer
      EMBO-Workshop, Molecular and Physiological basis of behavioral/cognitive defects in Neurodevelopmental disorders
    • Int'l Joint Research

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Published: 2023-12-25  

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