will take place on Friday, August 10, 2018 from 11:00 to 12:00 hours in CBBM, Ground Floor, B1/B2.
Host: Prof. Jonas Obleser
Institute of Psychology I
University of Lübeck
Abstract
Brain oscillations reflect regulatory activity of information processing and communication between neural networks. In this regard the sleeping brain is by no means idle, but during deep sleep is hallmarked by the largest of these oscillations, the so-called < 1 Hz slow oscillation. Emerging from a highly synchronized alternation between phases of firing and quiescence in neural networks the slow oscillation recruits subcortical structures and thereby mediates the processes of memory consolidation. Against this backdrop the grouping of thalamic sleep spindles and hippocampal sharp-wave ripples in a top-down manner plays a key role. Due to its supraordinate function it is of special interest to which extent slow oscillations can be manipulated by external stimulation in order to influence the formation of memories. For this talk, I set off with an introduction to the temporal relation between sleep rhythms with the help of intracranial EEG recordings. Following this, I will present two approaches utilizing sensory stimulation in humans and optogenetic stimulation in mice to demonstrate that brain stimulation is a promising means to unravel the functional role of slow oscillations and other essential sleep rhythms.
