Research

Cognitive Sciences and Psychology

Title :

Elucidating the genetic architecture of inherited somniloquy

Area of research :

Cognitive Sciences and Psychology

Focus area :

Neuroscience, Genetics

Principal Investigator :

Dr. Nishanth J H, Government Medical College, Kozhikode, Kerala

Timeline Start Year :

2024

Timeline End Year :

2027

Contact info :

Details

Executive Summary :

Sleep is a crucial restorative state characterized by reversible detachment from the environment, immobility, postural recumbence, and behavioral quiescence. It is a tightly regulated complex physiological process involving brain regions and neural circuits. Sleep disorders, such as somniloquy or sleep talking, offer a unique opportunity to study these regulatory processes. Somniloquy is a prevalent parasomnia where motor inhibition during sleep is depressed, providing insights into the neurobiological basis of sleep regulation and cognitive functions. The pathogenesis of somniloquy is elusive, but evidence suggests a strong genetic predisposition and runs in families. Family-based genetic studies could help discover genes for sleep talking phenotype. A three-generation multiplex family with four individuals manifesting somniloquy with a dominant inheritance pattern could be useful for delineating genes relevant for sleep talking. The proposal aims to elucidate the genetic architecture of sleep talking/somniloquy by performing whole exome sequencing of individuals with inherited somniloquy and replicating the observation by sequencing the identified gene/genes for variants in sporadic cases of somniloquy.

Co-PI:

Dr. Rajith K Ravindren, Institute Of Mental Health And Neuro Sciences, Kerala-673008, Dr. Shabeesh Balan, Institute Of Mental Health And Neuro Sciences, Kerala-673008

Total Budget (INR):

29,99,920

Organizations involved