Interfaculty Research Cooperation

Learning beyond sensations: how dreams organize neuronal representations

Interesting new research

Very interesting new research on manipulation of slow wave sleep by Kris Fehér and Christoph Nissen (senior author) in collaboration with several other colleagues from IRC Decoding Sleep. Congratulations!

FlashMOOC

The University of Bern produced a new FlashMOOC in collaboration with IRC Co-PI Fred Mast.

FlashMOOC YouTube Version

A non-interactive version is available on YouTube

VR environment

A new VR environment was designed to generate dream-like experience.

More publications from the group led by Thomas König and Fred Mast will follow.

Tick-borne encephalitis affects sleep–wake behavior and locomotion in infant rats

Lot's of interesting publications from the interdisciplinary IRC network are coming up. Here, a new publication from the IRC network by Stephen Leib's group.

Strange dreams might help your brain learn better, according to research by HBP scientists

Recent publication and press release by the IRC Decoding Sleep group of Prof. Senn

SPHYNCS Study

The Swiss Primary Hypersomnolence and Narcolepsy Cohort Study (SPHYNCS) looks for novel biomarkers to improve the diagnosis of sleep disorders. The main focus is on central disorders of hypersomnolence and excessive daytime sleepiness. We collect a variety of samples and data to conduct multi-disciplinary analyses in the search for novel biomarkers. Participants spend one night in our sleep lab, do day time sleep tests, collect Fitbit data, give blood and stool samples, and answer a variety of questionnaires.
Healthy volunteers are needed as a control group to the patient group. If you are interested and want to support our research, please contact us (sphyncs@insel.ch). Further information can also be found in the flyer. The study protocol has been approved by the local ethics committee and has also been published.
Publication SPHYNCS: https://doi.org/10.1111/jsr.13296

Continuation of the IRC

We are grateful to the University of Bern and the Vice Rectorate for Research for their positive evaluation of the IRC and the approval to continue our interdisciplinary research consortium for another two years. The report shows our many achievements: creation of collaborative network from groups affiliated with 3 faculties, large number of peer-reviewed publications, acquisition of additional funding, new research infrastructure, promotion of academic careers, teaching and education, and others. We look forward to another two exciting years of sleep research and strengthening and expanding our sleep research cluster in Bern.

Press Release Athina Tzovara

Recent press release from one of our IRC groups.

UniPress Schlaf fürs Gehirn

The Unipress #176 focuses on the topic of Sleep and includes several contributions of the IRC "Decoding Sleep" (publication in German).

Learning new vocabulary during deep sleep

Katharina Henke, Marc Züst and Simon Ruch of the IRC "Decoding Sleep", showed that we can acquire the vocabulary of a new language during distinct phases of slow-wave sleep and that the sleep-learned vocabulary could be retrieved unconsciously following waking. Memory formation appeared to be mediated by the same brain structures that also mediate wake vocabulary learning.

Learning during Sleep

Is learning during sleep possible? Simone Ruch in interview on Radio RaBe (in Swiss German)

Research Cooperation "Decoding Sleep"

Die Forschungskooperation "Decoding Sleep: From Neurons to Health & Mind" will die Mechanismen von Schlaf, Bewusstsein und Kognition und deren Bedeutung für die Gesundheit, aber auch für die Gehirnfunktionen und die körperliche Leistung besser verstehen.

A single control center for sleep and wake in the brain

Until now, it was thought that multiple brain areas were needed to control sleep and wakefulness. Neuroscientists from Bern have now identified one single control center for the sleep-wake cycle in the brain. The findings are of great importance for finding new sleep therapies.

PI Carolina Gutierrez Herrera in interview about her research topic (in Spanish)

Carolina Gutierrez Herrera arrived in Switzerland in 2014. She is a research associate at the Center for Experimental Neurology (ZEN) at the Inselspital in Bern. Her research focuses on the interaction of different brain areas that allow proper balance between sleep and wake and ultimately aims at finding the neuronal networks underlying sleep problems such as insomnia.

Joint Research Effort

The University of Bern is strengthening interdisciplinarity and excellence in scientific research through the recently launched Interfaculty Research Cooperations.

Decoding Sleep

What happens while we sleep and what can we do if our sleep-wake rhythm is disrupted? Claudio Bassetti and Fred Mast, the coordinators of the new Interfaculty Research Cooperation (IRC) "Decoding Sleep", want to find out. "uniaktuell" spoke to the Professor of Neurology and the Professor of General Psychology.

University of Bern enhances research across disciplines

Research at the University of Bern is being intensified: Networking projects from different subject areas are being supported with three new Interfaculty Research Collaborations IRC. The projects deal with the health of environment, animals and humans, with religious conflicts and with sleep.