Description du projet
Expliquer la fatigue mentale
La fatigue mentale peut résulter de divers facteurs, tels qu’une période d’éveil prolongée ou des tâches cognitives exigeantes. Le projet SleepingAwake, financé par le CER, entend élucider les mécanismes neuronaux qui sous-tendent la fatigue. Son hypothèse de base suggère que des intrusions localisées de sommeil dans le cerveau éveillé contribuent à la fatigue. En cas de privation de sommeil, des ondes lentes (SW) caractéristiques de grande amplitude, qui ressemblent à celles observées pendant le sommeil, peuvent apparaître chez les personnes éveillées. SleepingAwake entend caractériser les manifestations physiologiques des SW de veille, à explorer leur association avec les changements métaboliques du cerveau, à évaluer si elles peuvent annoncer des résultats positifs et étudier le potentiel de modulation des SW de veille pour améliorer les performances cognitives. Le projet vise à clarifier l’apparition du sommeil localisé, à prévoir ses fonctions adaptatives et à explorer des méthodes permettant de moduler sa fréquence.
Objectif
What happens in our brains when we get tired? Mental fatigue can occur for diverse reasons, through extended periods of wakefulness or following intense cognitive efforts. In other words, fatigue can be both time and use-dependent. My core hypothesis is that both processes are underpinned by local intrusions of sleep in the awake brain.
Sleep and wakefulness are not mutually exclusive states. When animals are sleep deprived, high-amplitude slow waves (SWs), a hallmark of sleep, can be locally observed in awake individuals. These wake SWs have been linked to impaired cognitive performance. I have further shown that these wake SWs can be observed without sleep deprivation when participants perform demanding tasks. These wake SWs predict objective (errors) and subjective (e.g. mind wandering) markers of attentional lapses. However, the underlying mechanisms driving SWs remain unclear; why do they occur? How well do they predict the cognitive consequences associated with fatigue? And can they be externally modulated?
To answer these questions, I will first describe the physiological signatures of wake SWs, from single-neuron to whole-brain activity. Second, I will seek to explain the occurrence of wake SWs by testing their association with the metabolic changes within the brain. Third, whereas wake SWs have been so far associated with adverse behaviors (lapses of attention), I will examine whether wake SWs could also predict positive outcomes, such as creative insights. Finally, I will investigate the possibility of modulating wake SWs and improving cognitive performance.
Through this project, I will build a novel neurophysiological account of fatigue from the ground up by describing what local sleep is, explaining why it occurs, predicting its adaptative purposes, and modulating how frequently it occurs. This ambitious research program will generate critical novel insights into the neural mechanisms underlying the everyday phenomenon of fatigue.
Mots‑clés
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Thème(s)
Régime de financement
HORIZON-ERC - HORIZON ERC GrantsInstitution d’accueil
75654 Paris
France