American scientists from Rice University and other scientific institutions have uncovered an important mechanism by which the brain improves neural and behavioral performance. It turns out that this happens during the slow-wave sleep phase. The research was published in the scientific journal magazine Science.
Non-REM sleep, or non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, is a lighter sleep that resembles a nap.
The new study involved examining neural activity in various brain regions in macaque monkeys; animals performed visual discrimination tests before and after 30 minutes of slow-wave sleep.
Using multielectrode arrays, scientists recorded the activity of thousands of neurons in three regions of the brain: the primary and medial visual cortex and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. These are areas associated with executive functions such as visual processing and self-control.
To confirm that the monkeys were in a state of slow-wave sleep, the researchers used polysomnography to monitor brain and muscle activity, as well as video analysis to ensure their eyes were closed and their bodies were relaxed.
The results showed that sleep improved the animals’ performance on a visual task and increased the discrimination accuracy of rotating images.
More importantly, this improvement only worked in those who were actually sleeping; Macaques that experienced quiet wakefulness without falling asleep did not show the same increase in performance.
“We observed an increase in low-frequency delta wave activity and synchronized neuronal activation in different cortical regions during sleep.
After sleep, neuronal activity became more synchronized than before sleep, allowing neurons to fire more independently. This shift led to improved processing accuracy and performance on visual tasks,” said Dr. Natasha Kharas, lead author of the study.
Scientists were also able to recreate the NREM effect in awake animals using low-frequency electrical stimulation of the visual cortex.
According to the researchers, the discovery could be used to develop methods for stimulating brain activity.
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Source: Gazeta
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.