Grant & Award Recipients

Individuals with type 2 diabetes are at elevated cardiovascular risk, and behavioral–social rhythms may play a role. This project will assess how daily rhythm regularity and relationship quality impact glucose regulation and cardiovascular health in couples coping with diabetes. Data will be collected over 20 days using actigraphy, ecological momentary assessment, and continuous glucose monitoring. Findings will inform future dyadic interventions targeting sleep and social rhythm disruptions to reduce cardiometabolic risk.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) contributes to cardiovascular disease, yet CPAP effectiveness varies widely across patients. This project applies causal machine learning to randomized trial and real-world data to identify which patients benefit most from CPAP therapy. The aim is to develop predictive models for personalized treatment strategies that optimize cardiovascular outcomes, advancing precision medicine approaches in sleep-disordered breathing.

Individuals with schizophrenia often experience disrupted sleep physiology linked to cognitive impairment. This project investigates whether high-definition transcranial direct current stimulation (HD-tDCS) during sleep can enhance slow-wave and spindle activity, and in turn, improve cognitive performance. Comparing effects in patients with schizophrenia and healthy controls, this study will explore the therapeutic potential of sleep-based brain stimulation.

Sleep is characterized by a reduced response to external stimuli, but the underlying brain mechanisms remain unclear. This project will use larval zebrafish and whole-brain imaging to monitor neuronal activity in response to sensory stimuli during sleep and wakefulness. The goal is to identify neural pathways that suppress arousal during sleep, advancing understanding of how sleep states are regulated and how the brain maintains sensory disconnection during rest.

Children with autism spectrum disorder experience sleep disturbances at disproportionately high rates, affecting overall development and family well-being. This project will adapt and evaluate a behavioral sleep intervention through a community-engaged approach to improve feasibility and acceptability. The pilot study will assess whether the adapted intervention improves sleep and daytime functioning in children and reduces caregiver stress, laying the groundwork for larger-scale trials of parent-mediated sleep interventions.

This grant was made possible by Madeleine Grigg-Damberger, MD.

REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) can severely impact psychosocial and sleep functioning in veterans and their partners, yet behavioral treatments are limited. This project uses a mixed methods approach—including actigraphy, self-report measures, and interviews—to characterize the biopsychosocial burden of RBD. Findings will inform the development of a targeted behavioral intervention to address biopsychosocial consequences associated with RBD.

Jing Wang is a PhD student in environmental epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She also works in the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Her research focuses on applying causal inference and advanced quantitative methods to investigate both the individual and joint effects of environmental exposures on sleep health, particularly the roles of air pollution, the built environment, and extreme weather events in relation to obstructive sleep apnea. She is passionate about translating epidemiological findings into actionable interventions to reduce sleep health disparities and improve population well-being.

Dr. Samantha Keil is a postdoctoral associate and translational neuroscientist investigating the role sleep health plays in neurodegenerative disease progression. Integrating her preclinical and clinical research, she aims to define how sleep regulates brain fluid clearance across neurodegenerative disease states, such as Alzheimer’s Disease. Her current work aims to establish the impact of chronically disrupted sleep/untreated obstructive sleep apnea on glymphatic function. In the future, Dr. Keil’s research program will utilize multimodal neuroimaging to evaluate the interplay of sleep and brain fluid clearance dynamics across disease modalities, bridging mechanistic insight with clinical translation to inform preventative and therapeutic strategies.

Dr. Josh Leota is a research fellow in the School of Psychological Sciences at Monash University, specializing in sleep, circadian rhythms, and physical activity. His research combines wearable technology and large-scale cohort data to investigate how behavioral timing, such as when we sleep or exercise, affects health, performance, and recovery. His work aims to uncover modifiable, time-based behavioral patterns to inform personalized interventions and improve health outcomes at both individual and population levels.

Zachary Oatley is a second-year medical student who became interested in sleep medicine after his own diagnosis of unrecognized obstructive sleep apnea. He founded Dream AI, a startup developing machine learning tools for early apnea detection, and personally developed the code behind its predictive algorithms. The project led to milestone funding, a utility patent, and a clinical validation study. Zach is also a committed student advocate who has led national efforts to modernize medical education.