# Investigating the role of sleep in synaptic reorganization after neural injury

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · 2023 · $390,000

## Abstract

Project Summary
Sleep has been identified as a state of heightened neural plasticity, but the rules that govern reorganization
during sleep remain unknown. To better identify the conditions under which synapses are pruned during sleep,
we have begun to examine responses to neural injury in the fruit fly. After antennal transection, flies acutely
increase their sleep for up to one day before returning back to baseline levels. Our preliminary data also show
that pre-synaptic active zones are removed more rapidly than plasma membrane after antennal injury, and that
sleep deprivation after injury prevents the clearance of pre-synapses from injured olfactory receptor neurons.
In this project, we will examine: (1) signals that are generated after injuries to promote sleep; (2) contributions
of glial cell types to sleep regulation and synapse removal after injury; and (3) molecular mechanisms that
promote synapse removal during sleep. We anticipate that these experiments will provide insight into the role
for sleep in response to neural trauma, and begin to investigate the consequences of disrupted sleep on
recovery from axotomy.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10530705
- **Project number:** 5R01NS119905-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES
- **Principal Investigator:** Jeffrey Michael Donlea
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2023
- **Award amount:** $390,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-12-01 → 2026-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10530705

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10530705, Investigating the role of sleep in synaptic reorganization after neural injury (5R01NS119905-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10530705. Licensed CC0.

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