Phase-locked Auditory Stimulation of Theta Oscillations during Rapid Eye Movement Sleep

TY - JOUR

T1 - Phase-locked Auditory Stimulation of Theta Oscillations during Rapid Eye Movement Sleep

AU - Harrington, Marcus Oliver

AU - Ashton, Jennifer

AU - Ngo, Hong-Viet

AU - Cairney, Scott Ashley

N1 - This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for details

PY - 2021/4/1

Y1 - 2021/4/1

N2 - Auditory closed-loop stimulation is a non-invasive technique that has been widely used to augment slow oscillations during non-rapid eye movement sleep. Based on the principles of closed-loop stimulation, we developed a novel protocol for manipulating theta activity (3-7 Hz) in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Sixteen healthy young adults were studied in two overnight conditions: Stimulation and Sham. In the Stimulation condition, 1 s of 5 Hz amplitude-modulated white noise was delivered upon detection of two supra-threshold theta cycles throughout REM sleep. In the Sham condition, corresponding time points were marked but no stimulation was delivered. Auditory stimulation entrained EEG activity to 5 Hz and evoked a brief (~0.5 s) increase in theta power. Interestingly, this initial theta surge was immediately followed by a prolonged (~3 s) period of theta suppression. Stimulation also induced a prolonged (~2 s) increase in beta power. Our results provide the first demonstration that the REM sleep theta rhythm can be manipulated in a targeted manner via auditory stimulation. Accordingly, auditory stimulation might offer a fruitful avenue for investigating REM sleep electrophysiology and its relationship to behaviour.

AB - Auditory closed-loop stimulation is a non-invasive technique that has been widely used to augment slow oscillations during non-rapid eye movement sleep. Based on the principles of closed-loop stimulation, we developed a novel protocol for manipulating theta activity (3-7 Hz) in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Sixteen healthy young adults were studied in two overnight conditions: Stimulation and Sham. In the Stimulation condition, 1 s of 5 Hz amplitude-modulated white noise was delivered upon detection of two supra-threshold theta cycles throughout REM sleep. In the Sham condition, corresponding time points were marked but no stimulation was delivered. Auditory stimulation entrained EEG activity to 5 Hz and evoked a brief (~0.5 s) increase in theta power. Interestingly, this initial theta surge was immediately followed by a prolonged (~3 s) period of theta suppression. Stimulation also induced a prolonged (~2 s) increase in beta power. Our results provide the first demonstration that the REM sleep theta rhythm can be manipulated in a targeted manner via auditory stimulation. Accordingly, auditory stimulation might offer a fruitful avenue for investigating REM sleep electrophysiology and its relationship to behaviour.

U2 - 10.1093/sleep/zsaa227

DO - 10.1093/sleep/zsaa227

M3 - Article

SN - 0161-8105

VL - 44

JO - Sleep

JF - Sleep

IS - 4

M1 - zsaa227

ER -