Understanding Sleep

Ying-Hui Fu, PhD
Professor • Department of Neurology • UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences

This talk will first give a brief overview of human sleep behavior traits. It will present recent data supporting the importance of good quality sleep in promoting healthy longevity. It will then present some examples of how, using basic science tools, we are trying to unravel the sleep mystery and its regulatory mechanisms. This science will help us reach the goal that someday, everyone may get good sleep every night.

About the speaker:
Dr. Ying-Hui Fu is a professor at the University of California, San Francisco. Her lab has used Human Genetics and Molecular Biology approaches to study various Neurological conditions. In the late 1990s, Dr. Fu also became interested in human sleep behavioral phenotypes including the early morning awakening trait named Familial Advanced Sleep Phase. In 2009, her lab described a mutation that led to a natural short sleep behavior in humans and expanded her interest in studying the molecular mechanism of sleep duration and efficiency. She and her collaborators have been able to find mutations in humans and create models in mice to characterize the molecular and neurocircuitry mechanisms further. In addition, in vitro experiments are applied to gain an understanding of new aspects of normal biology and molecular mechanisms of sleep behaviors. Each gene they identify provides new insights into the overall mechanism of complex pathways involved in sleep regulation. Their studies have also shed a new understanding of the essential role of sleep in healthy longevity.

Learning objectives:
Upon completion of this activity, participants will be able to:

• Have the knowledge of why good sleep can help prevent or delay the onset of diseases
• See how genes/mutations identified in humans in combination with modern molecular and neuroscience tools are powerful approaches for understanding sleep regulation mechanisms

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In addition to the Pritzker Building, DPBS members can also watch this event live at Mount Zion (Room B730) and ZSFG (Bldg. 5, Room 7M30), as well as on Zoom (psychiatry.ucsf.edu/watchgrandrounds).

Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Grand Rounds presentations are for educational purposes and intended only for behavioral/mental health professionals and clinical providers.

Continuing education (CE) credit is available for physicians, psychologists, nurses, and therapists who participate in this activity.