Investigating the Functional Role of Sleep in Waking Cognitive and Emotion Processing

研究睡眠在清醒认知和情绪处理中的功能作用

• 批准号: RGPIN-2019-04422
• 负责人: Cote, Kimberly
• 金额: $ 2.04万
• 依托单位: Brock University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=737620
• 关键词: Investigating; Functional; Role; Sleep; Waking

Sleep is a complex behaviour consisting of two distinct states observed in the EEG (i.e., electrical recordings of brain wave activity). Non-REM sleep is characterized by slow brain oscillations and signature waveforms called spindles and K-complexes. REM sleep is paradoxical in that it looks much like waking EEG, yet is difficult to awaken the sleeper. Past research from the Sleep Research Laboratory at Brock has investigated how sleep and sleep disruption affect cognition, memory, and emotion processing. We have shown that disruptions to sleep lead to emotion dysregulation including heightened neural processing of negative picture scenes and threatening facial expressions, yet blunted responses to sad expressions as seen in event-related potential brain recordings. Our long-term goal is to understand the functional role of sleep in waking cognitive and emotion processing. Continuing from our published studies on total sleep deprivation and short-term sleep restriction, we will now investigate the more precise roles of REM and non-REM sleep mechanisms in waking emotion perception. Accurate and rapid detection of emotion in others, and emotionally-relevant stimuli in our environment, is important for decision making, social interactions, and even self-preservation. We have recently developed a new battery of emotion perception tasks. For example, one task measures a threshold of detection in identifying emotion in faces that dynamically change expression from neutral. Another task requires participants to judge the predominate emotional expression in a crowd of faces. These tasks have been designed to have greater real-world applicability than past studies that have used mainly static picture stimuli presented in isolation. We will first investigate how natural variation in sleep in a student population affects emotion processing (sleep durations vary considerably in this age group). We will also carry out a chronic sleep restriction study where we will curtail sleep to five hours per night over a week. The sleep period will either be early or late to disrupt non-REM versus REM selectively. Last, we will manipulate sleep through separate REM sleep deprivation and deep sleep enhancement protocols. In this series of studies, we will record sleep and waking EEG from 64-channels to investigate the temporal and spatial patterns of sleep EEG and its role in waking emotion perception, with the aim to understand the respective roles of non-REM and REM sleep. As well, we will follow up on our recent work investigating the moderating role of sex and hormones (cortisol, testosterone, estradiol, progesterone) and heart rate variability as markers of resiliency/vulnerability to sleep disruption. As many Canadians do not get the sleep they need, this research may help people to optimize performance (work, scholastic, sport) through sleep, and may also inform intervention strategies in individuals with sleep, emotion, or behavioural disorders.

睡眠是一种复杂的行为，由在脑电图中观察到的两个不同状态组成（即脑波活性的电记录）。非REM睡眠的特征是脑振荡缓慢，并具有称为纺锤体和K复合体的标志性波形。 REM睡眠是自相矛盾的，因为它看起来很像醒来的脑电图，但很难唤醒卧铺。 Brock的睡眠研究实验室的过去研究调查了睡眠和睡眠中断如何影响认知，记忆和情感处理。我们已经表明，睡眠的干扰导致情绪失调，包括增加阴影场景的神经处理和威胁面部表情，但对事件相关的潜在脑记录所见，对SAD表达的反应却钝化。我们的长期目标是了解睡眠在唤醒认知和情感处理中的功能作用。从我们发表的有关全部睡眠剥夺和短期睡眠限制的研究中，我们现在将研究REM和非REM睡眠机制在唤醒情绪感知中的更精确的作用。对他人情绪的准确和快速检测，以及在我们环境中与情绪相关的刺激，对于决策，社交互动甚至自我保护至关重要。我们最近制定了一系列新的情感感知任务。例如，一项任务在识别中性表达的面孔中识别情绪时测量了检测的阈值。另一项任务要求参与者判断一群面孔中的情感表达。与过去主要使用孤立呈现的静态图片刺激相比，这些任务的现实世界的适用性更大。我们将首先研究学生群体的睡眠自然变化如何影响情绪处理（该年龄段的睡眠持续时间谨慎差异）。我们还将进行一项慢性睡眠限制研究，我们将在一周内每晚将睡眠减少到五个小时。睡眠期将是较早或晚期的，以选择性地破坏非REM与REM有选择性。最后，我们将通过单独的REM睡眠剥夺和深度睡眠增强协议来操纵睡眠。在这一系列的研究中，我们将记录64次通道的睡眠和唤醒脑电图，以研究睡眠脑电图的临时和空间模式及其在唤醒情绪感知中的作用，旨在了解非REM和REM睡眠的各自作用。同样，我们将跟进我们最近的工作，以调查性别和马（皮质醇，睾丸激素，雌二醇，孕酮）的调节作用和心率变异性，这是弹性/脆弱性睡眠破坏的标志物。由于许多加拿大人没有获得所需的睡眠，因此这项研究可能会帮助人们通过睡眠来优化表现（工作，学术，运动），并且还可以为患有睡眠，情感或行为障碍的人的干预策略提供信息。