9225ff1a_mpus_Bulletin___April_18__2012__Research_Summary
[Faculty Member(s)] Jonathan Wisor [Department(s)] WWAMI/Sleep & Performance Research Center Regulatory Relationship of glucose metabolism and cerebral slow wave activity National Institutes of Health/National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) [Research Summary] 
This grant funds a four-year project to explore the relationship between slow-wave sleep (also known as deep sleep) and glucose metabolism in the brain. The brain's use of glucose drops sharply during sleep, and preliminary data have shown that it is deep sleep that is responsible for this decrease. Using an animal model, the researcher will measure snapshot changes in glucose metabolism as well as electrical activity in the brain during wake and sleep to test the hypothesis that glucose utilization and slow-wave sleep are in a mutual regulatory relationship. The research could shed light on why we sleep and offer insight into medical conditions in which brain metabolism is compromised, such as stroke, diabetes, and complications of childbirth.
WSU Spokane: Campus Bulletin - April 18, 2012