# Morphological Correlates of Memory Consolidation During Sleep

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MED CTR · 2020 · $193,750

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Accumulating evidence supports the involvement of memory consolidation and dendritic spine abnormalities in
psychiatric disorders. There is currently a critical need for identifying the morphological correlates of memory
consolidation, and linking these correlates to emotional memories acquired during recent learning to improve
our understanding of memory consolidation and develop effective therapeutic strategies. We focus on the two
interconnected regions critically involved in fear memory and implicated in schizophrenia and post-traumatic
stress disorder, the hippocampus and the amygdala. Our preliminary data showing higher numbers of dendritic
spines in the hippocampus of sleep deprived mice supports the theory of broad synaptic downscaling during
sleep, and contradicts a recent report that sleep deprivation results in decreased hippocampal dendritic spines.
These differences may arise from limitations of the methodological approaches used in published studies, and
in the inability to link specific neurons to recently learned memory traces. The proposed investigations will use
a combination of viral vector neuronal labeling and transgenic mice to allow for quantification of dendritic
spines in neurons involved in recent fear learning in comparison to neurons not involved in acquiring the recent
fear memory. This approach will allow us to test the hypothesis that dendritic spines are strengthened during
sleep in neurons involved in recent fear learning while other neurons in the same brain regions undergo broad
synaptic downscaling. Specific Aim 1 will test the hypothesis that sleep deprivation prevents broad synaptic
downscaling in the hippocampus and amygdala. Specific Aim 2 will test the hypothesis that dendritic spines
formed during recent fear learning are reduced by sleep deprivation. The proposed studies represent a first
step toward broader investigations into the morphological and molecular changes associated with memory
consolidation dysfunction in schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder, and will allow for critical
information that may link the theory of synaptic homeostasis of sleep with recent evidence that dendritic spines
in certain brain regions may be strengthened during sleep.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9930645
- **Project number:** 5R21MH117460-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI MED CTR
- **Principal Investigator:** Barbara Gisabella
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $193,750
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-05-16 → 2022-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9930645

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9930645, Morphological Correlates of Memory Consolidation During Sleep (5R21MH117460-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9930645. Licensed CC0.

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