Williams Lab

Research focus

ERC Starting Grant · 2016

Illuminating Neuronal-Astrocytic Pathways for Sleep homeostasis

Sleep is crucial to the brain’s remarkable regenerative and adaptive capabilities. Inadequate sleep is a pervasive problem that severely impairs brain function, productivity, and health. How the brain homeostatically senses sleep need and translates it into the intensified rebound sleep (RBS) that follows sleep deprivation (SD) still remains unclear. I aim to understand these mechanisms and to identify therapeutic targets that will promote consolidated, restorative sleep, enabling the development of superior sleep aids. Furthermore, this will shed light on the enigmatic yet fundamental question of the function of sleep. Astrocyte activation increases sleep, and astrocytes release adenosine…

From the public funding record at EU CORDIS. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.