c-Fos expression in the cholinergic basal forebrain after enforced wakefulness and recovery sleep

The present study used c-Fos expression to examine cellular activity in cho linergic regions in the basal forebrain (BF) following enforced waking and recovery sleep. Cholinergic cells within the vertical and horizontal limbs of the diagonal band of Broca (VDB acid HDB, respectively) showed significa ntly higher c-Fos immunoreactivity after prolonged waiting than after recov ery sleep. Cholinergic cells within the medial septal nucleus (MS), however , showed no change in c-Fos expression under these conditions. Consistent w ith our previous findings, c-Fos immunoreactivity in the ventral lateral:pr eoptic area (VLPO) was increased after 1-2 h of recovery sleep compared wit h enforced waking. These results indicate state-specific effects on transcr iption and subsequent protein expression in cell populations associated wit h behavioral state and further show that the HDB, VDB and VLPO are good can didates for the further study of intracellular events associated with sleep and wakefulness. NeuroReport 11:437-440 (C) 2000 Lippincott Williams & Wil kins.