Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 8, 2025
09:53
Two-Photon in vivo Imaging of Dendritic Spines in the Mouse Cortex Using a Thinned-skull Preparation
Published on: May 12, 2014
18.5K
REM sleep promotes experience-dependent dendritic spine elimination in the mouse cortex
Yanmei Zhou1,2,3, Cora Sau Wan Lai4,5, Yang Bai3
1School of Chemical Biology and Biotechnology, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
Nature Communications
|September 24, 2020
Summary
Sleep, particularly REM sleep, is crucial for refining neuronal circuits by eliminating synapses. This study shows REM sleep drives experience-dependent synapse elimination and reduces neuronal activity following learning.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Sleep Science
- Synaptic Plasticity
Background:
- Experience-dependent refinement of neuronal circuits often involves synapse elimination.
- The specific role of sleep in this critical developmental process is largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of sleep in experience-dependent dendritic spine elimination in mice.
- To determine if sleep deprivation affects synapse elimination and neuronal activity reduction after learning.
Main Methods:
- Monocular deprivation (MD) and auditory-cued fear conditioning (FC) were used to induce experience-dependent changes.
- Total sleep deprivation and REM sleep deprivation were employed.
- Neuronal activity and dendritic calcium spikes were measured.
- The impact of blocking calcium spikes on spine elimination was assessed.
Main Results:
- MD and FC rapidly induced spine elimination in the visual cortex (V1) and frontal association cortex (FrA), respectively.
- Sleep deprivation significantly reduced MD- or FC-induced spine elimination.
- Sleep deprivation also prevented the reduction of neuronal activity following stimuli.
- Increased dendritic calcium spikes during REM sleep were observed, and their blockade inhibited spine elimination.
Conclusions:
- REM sleep plays a vital role in experience-dependent synapse elimination.
- REM sleep contributes to the reduction of neuronal activity after learning and memory formation.
- Dendritic calcium spikes during REM sleep are a key mechanism driving these processes.
