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Glenn Legault, Ph.D. (Queen’s at Kingston)
Room: A218; Extension: 4009; Email: glegault@laurentian.ca
Research Areas: Sleep and its relationship to cognition and learning.
Humans spend approximately one-third of their lives asleep; however, the functions that are served by sleep remain largely unknown. One function of sleep may be to assist in the consolidation of memory. Also, it has been recently suggested that disruptions of normal sleep patterns may lead to daytime cognitive deficits. This may be particularly important for our aging society. My research interests relate to each of these issues.
Using animal models, I explore the role(s) of various sleep states in memory consolidation. Current evidence suggests that there may be a temporal component of sleep that is related to learning. One aspect of my research explores this hypothesis.
I am also interested in investigating the effects of normal age-related sleep pattern changes, and the effects of untreated sleep disorders, on neuropsychological functioning, particularly within the population of people who have been recently diagnosed with dementia. It may be that co-morbid sleep disorders or normal age-related changes in sleep patterns influence memory/cognitive ability such that some patients are prematurely diagnosed with dementia. My research investigates the prevalence of this possibility.
Refereed Journal Publications (Since 1996):
Legault, G. (2011). Sleep and heat related changes in the cognitive performance of underground miners: A possible health and safety concern. Minerals, 1, 49-72.
Legault, M.G., Delay, S., & Madore, A. (2010). Identification of a rapid eye movement sleep window for learning of the win-shift radial arm maze task for male Sprague-Dawley rats. Journal of Sleep Research, doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2869.2010.00842.x.
Kasravi, N., Legault, G., Jewell, D., Murray, B.J. (2007). Minimal impact of inadvertent sleep between naps on the MSLT and MWT. Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology, 24(4), 363 – 365.
Legault, M.G., Smith, C., & Beninger, R.J. (2006). Post-training intra-striatal scopolamine or flupenthixol impairs radial maze learning in rats. Behavioural Brain Research, 170 (1), 148-155.
Legault, M.G., Smith, C., & Beninger, R.J. (2004). Scopolamine during the paradoxical sleep window impairs radial arm maze learning in rats. Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behaviour, 79, 715-721.
Hao, C., March, R.E., Croley, T.R., Chen, S., Legault, M.G., &Yang, P. (2002). Study of the neurotransmitter dopamine and the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine by electrospray ionization coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry, 16, 591-599.
Legault, M.G., Annett, R, Smith, C.T. (1996). Increased arachidonic acid in the hippocampus after acquisition of the Morris water maze spatial task. Sleep Research, 25, 52.
Conference Presentations and Papers (Since 1996)
Poster Presentation: World Association of Sleep Medicine/Canadian Sleep Society Congress. Legault, G., Oliphant, L. “Mild cognitive impairment in a sample of patients undergoing clinical sleep study”. Quebec City, 2011.
Poster Presentation: 4th Meeting of the Canadian Sleep Society. “Identification of a Rapid Eye Movement Sleep Window for the Win-Shift Radial Arm Maze”. Toronto, 2009.
Poster Presentation: 8th World Congress on Sleep Apnea. “Sleep Fragmentation Due to Sleep Disordered Breathing in Cluster Headache Patients”. Montreal, 2006.
Oral Presentation: Selected by jury for an oral presentation to the Associated Professional Sleep Societies 18th Annual Meeting. “Cholinergic and dopaminergic neurotransmission in the rat dorsal striatum is required during the PSW for radial maze learning”. Philadelphia, 2004.
Poster Presentation: Canadian Society for Brain, Behaviour and Cognitive Science 13th Annual Meeting. “Role of dopamine and acetylcholine during the paradoxical sleep window following win-stay training on the radial arm maze in rats”. Hamilton, 2003.
Invited Speaker: Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology 26th Annual Meeting. “Impairment of Cholinergic or Dopaminergic Neurotransmission in the Striatum during the Proposed Paradoxical Sleep Window Leads to Deficits in Learning the Radial Arm Maze in Rats”. Montreal, 2003.
Oral presentation to the 14th annual Gas-Phase Ion Chemistry Workshop. “Ion trap analysis of arachidonic acid arising from Long-Term Potentiation in rat brain”. Peterborough, 1998.
Oral presentation to the 11th annual Tandem Mass Spectrometry Workshop. “Ion trap analysis of arachidonic acid arising from Long-Term Potentiation in rat brain”. Lake Louise, 1998.
Presentations at academic/professional conferences, societies, workshops:
Oral presentation to the 14th annual Gas-Phase Ion Chemistry Workshop. “Ion trap analysis of arachidonic acid arising from Long-Term Potentiation in rat brain”. Peterborough, 1998.
Oral presentation to the 11th annual Tandem Mass Spectrometry Workshop. “Ion trap analysis of arachidonic acid arising from Long-Term Potentiation in rat brain”. Lake Louise, 1998.
Current Research Projects:
Summer 2012:
Two field studies (hard rock miners and forest fire fighters) that investigate the consequences of sleep deprivation arising from workplace requirements on cognition.
Summer 2012:
Histological examination of rat brains exposed to magnetic fields during the REM sleep window for specific maze types.
Data collection for an experiment exploring the effects of prenatal stress on rat pup behavioural outcomes is ongoing.
Awards Received (Since 1996)
Sleep Research Society’s Trainee Merit Based Travel Award (2004)
Canadian College of Neuropsychopharmacology Travel Award (2003)
Queen’s University Graduate Scholarship (Annually from 1996 to 2004)
Canadian Society for Mass Spectrometry Travel Award (1998)
Other Skills
Mass spectrometry
Rodent surgical skills
Data analysis
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