Fillable Printable Research Proposal Sample
Fillable Printable Research Proposal Sample
Research Proposal Sample
BIOS E-210: The Physiology of Sleep
EXAMPLE OF SUITABLE RESEARCH PROPOSAL AREAS TAKEN FROM NIH ADVERT
FOR GRANT APPLICATIONS CONCERNING BASIC AND CLINICAL RESEARCH ON
SLEEP AND WAKEFULNESS
PURPOSE
Sleep disturbances affect a wide range of age groups and practically every segment of society is
profoundly affected by the absence of healthful patterns of sleep and wakefulness. It is now apparent that
sleep disorders, disturbances of sleep, and sleep deprivation are major public health concerns. Recent
estimates suggest that as many as 40 million people may suffer from chronic or intermittent disorders of
sleep. Many of these people remain undiagnosed and untreated, the consequences of which include
reduced productivity, lowered cognitive performance, increased likelihood of accidents, higher risk of
morbidity and mortality and decreased quality of life. Research in sleep and sleep disorders has increased
steadily over the past decade and basic research is rapidly becoming relevant to clinical problems.
However, despite this growth in sleep research, the neurobiological mechanisms underlying sleep and
wakefulness and many of the clinical manifestations affected by sleep remain largely unknown. It is now
recognized that the sleeping brain is not in an inactive phase of existence, but rather is undergoing a
complex set of active physiological and behavioral processes. Improved understanding of the
fundamental nature of sleep, how sleep affects neural function, and how the central nervous system is
modified by sleep can begin to provide a means to primary prevention of sleep disorders to reduce the
economic and social impact of sleep/wake disturbances, and to significantly improve life expectancy and
overall quality of life of all people across the life span.
The purpose of this broad based sleep research program announcement is to inform the scientific
community of the interests of the various Institutes at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and to
stimulate, foster, and coordinate a wide range of basic and clinical studies on sleep and wakefulness as
they relate to the missions of these Institutes. These areas include, but are not limited to:
(1) the neuroscience and behavioral science of sleep;
(2) the molecular and cellular mechanisms of sleep and circadian rhythms across the life span;
(3) the development of sleep from fetal life through infancy;
(4) the neurobiologic role of dreaming in humans;
(5) the etiologic factors and pathophysiology of transient or persistent insomnia; and
(6) the treatment of sleep disorders.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
There are a number of research directions that could be pursued to provide new insights on the
underlying neurobiological mechanisms and clinical manifestations of sleep and wakefulness. This
program announcement seeks to stimulate and encourage ideas that can compete successfully for support
through grants-in-aid from the NIH. The following examples of research topics, many of which may lend
themselves to studies in humans as well as in animal models and in vitro systems, are intended to reflect
the breadth of interests of the NIH programs. Neurophysiological, behavioral, neuroanatomical,
pharmacological, cellular, molecular and genetic techniques or combinations of these approaches are
appropriate. All of the areas identified cut across Institutes and programs and should not be viewed as
restricted to only one specific Institute. The following topic areas are not intended to be comprehensive
or exclusive:
Neuroscience and Behavioral Science of Sleep.
o Elucidate neural structures and mechanisms that control states of sleep and wakefulness.
o Examine how neural circuits controlling sleep are modulated through emotions and stress,
ethanol use or abuse, diseases or other disorders.
o Obtain a better understanding of behavioral and physiological adaptations to sleep/wake
cycles, hibernation, circadian and biological rhythms.
o Determine neural correlates of cognition during sleep including learning and memory.
o Utilize neural network models and theoretical approaches to understand the transitions
between wakefulness and different stages of sleep.
o Determine the homeostatic regulation of brain functions through interactions of sleep-
promoting circuits in the brain.
o Examine the role of sleep in understanding the basic neurobiology of substance and ethanol
abuse.
o Investigate the effects of drugs on the neurochemistry and determination of sleep onset,
dreaming, awakening and transition between sleep and wakefulness.
o Explore possible social factors and the development of sleep in children and adolescents as a
model for acquiring behavioral control of homeostatic processes.
Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms Across the Life Span.
o Identify genes, genetic mechanisms and heritable determinants in controlling sleep or
circadian systems.
o Isolate and characterize gene products that are expressed during sleep in order to identify
molecules that alter intrinsic properties of neurons during this state of altered awareness.
o Elucidate the mechanisms through which various stimuli, such as light, exercise, or
endogenous factors (e.g., monoamines and melatonin) entrain sleep and circadian rhythms in
mammalian and non mammalian species, and any other sleep regulators such as the immune
system and the suprachiasmatic nucleus.
o Identify age related molecular, cellular and structural changes in the aging nervous system
related to sleep and circadian systems.
o Explore interventions, such as transplants of neuronal tissue, hormone or growth factor
replacements to understand underlying mechanisms of age related alterations of sleep and
circadian rhythms.
o Apply noninvasive brain imaging techniques such as PET and MRI to identify changes in
metabolism in specific brain areas, localize brain regulator mechanisms, and correlates of
transitions between sleep states, dreaming and wakefulness during development and in the
sleeping brain of older people.
Development of Sleep from Fetal Life Through Infancy.
o Determine the role of sleep and sleep state organization during
fetal and infant development.
o Identify potentially life threatening sleep disorders and dysfunctions which emanate
specifically from chronic maternal use of alcohol, cigarette smoking and narcotic drugs.
o Determine possible interactions between the developing immune system and the organization
of sleep/wake state that occur in the first few months of life.
o Explore the mechanisms underlying prenatal development of biological clocks and the
relationship between maternal and fetal/neonatal behaviors necessary for establishing
circadian rhythms.
Neurobiologic Role of Dreaming in Humans.
o Investigate the biological and behavioral functions and significance of dreams, including the
role of REM sleep in mammalian evolution and memory.
o Examine the role of non-REM sleep dreams and whether these are a qualitatively different
type of brain activity than REM sleep dreams. Determine perceptual and cognitive influences
on dream content.
o Determine neural correlates of, and interactions between, sexual or other motivational
systems, the content of dreams and sensory processing.
o Employ multidisciplinary approaches utilizing metabolic and electrophysiologic methods to
correlate events that occur during REM sleep with dreams involving non-visual sensory
modalities.
o Develop improved and more precise methods for identifying specific sleep stages, and the
occurrence, onset and termination of dreams independent of waking recollections.
o Correlate patterns of neuronal activity during REM sleep with dreams having other sensory
modalities such as audition, olfaction or temperature regulation.
o Develop better approaches to correlate subjective passage of time in a dream with real time
duration.
Etiologic Factors and Pathophysiology of Transient or Persistent Insomnia.
o Investigate the role of the thalamus and other brain substrates in mediating insomnia.
o Determine the relationship of insomnia to other medical conditions such as neurological,
cardiovascular and psychiatric diseases. Determine physiological mechanisms that may
account for the potential link between poor sleep, insomnia and cardiovascular disease, and
whether insomnia may be predictive for future cardiovascular events. Examine the
relationship of insomnia with other sleep disorders such as periodic movements of sleep and
restless leg syndrome.
o Investigate the role of persistent insomnia as a risk factor for development of depression and
anxiety disorders
o Examine the effects of benzodiazepines on central nervous system acquisition or encoding of
new information and the process of memory storage and recall.
o Utilize sleep deprived, restricted, or disrupted models to understand the fundamental
mechanisms of insomnia and effects on daytime function.
Treatment of Sleep Disorders and Co-Morbidity with Other Conditions
o Investigate the interactions between brainstem control of respiration and the neural
mechanisms specific to sleep and wakefulness, and the source of the respiratory variations
during sleep.
o Investigate underlying autonomic mechanisms and physiological interrelations between
snoring, obesity, sleep apnea, hypertension, and the regulation of sleep.
o Determine the cellular and molecular basis of excessive daytime sleepiness, particularly as it
relates to sleep apnea.
o Explore the pharmacology and role of hormones in respiratory disorders of sleep.
o Conduct studies on the efficacy of pharmacological, behavioral and psychotherapeutic
interventions for specific types of insomnia.
o Develop and evaluate the best outcome variables and parameters to assess the clinical
significance for insomnia therapy.
o Understand co-morbidity of sleep disorders with neurological disorders to include but not
limited to epilepsy, stroke, and movement disorders.
o Examine the effects of ethanol use on respiratory function during sleep (e.g., sleep apnea).
o Investigate the effects of sleep deprivation and use of ethanol and other drugs of abuse on
daytime drowsiness and behavioral performance.
o Understand co-morbidity of sleep and mental disorders
o Explore mechanisms of environmental causes of sleep disturbances such as drug abuse,
stressors, toxins, or artificial zeitgebers.
o Investigate sleep disorders in underserved and understudied populations.
o Investigate therapies that will ameliorate sleep disorders due to disruptions of circadian
rhythms.
o Characterize sleep disturbances in persons with physical disabilities that result from traumatic injuries
or chronic disease and how they influence the course of rehabilitation
