Research
Genetic, molecular, and neural underpinnings of sleep and sleep deprivation
Appointments
- Associate Professor; Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology
Biography
Dr. Paul studies the genetic, molecular, and neural underpinnings of sleep. His primary interests are comprised of uncovering the mechanisms responsible for the negative effects of sleep deprivation in adults and children. He also probes the origins of gender/sex differences in the ability to recover from sleep loss to develop therapeutic targets for sleep disorders that disproportionately affect females.
His work has shown that sex differences in daily sleep amount are dependent on circulating reproductive hormones while sex differences in the ability to recover from sleep loss are relatively insensitive to them. Dr. Paul’s current research involves applying a forward genetics approach to uncover the core genes responsible for sleep-wake regulation and the impairing effects of sleep loss. Effective treatments for common sleep-wake disorders are elusive.
Dr. Paul conducts a forward genetics approach to facilitate gene identification that takes advantage of natural variation occurring in sleep-replete and sleep-deprived mice. This approach applies the most cutting edge genome mapping, positional cloning, and DNA sequencing techniques to identifying the genetic origins of unique sleep phenotypes in transgenic mouse models. These studies are expected to identify novel sleep regulatory genes and lead to the development of new therapeutic targets and improved treatments for sleep disorders.
Publications
- Ajmera, Y, Paul, K, Chatterjee, P. Chronic venlafaxine ingestion inducing bluish oral hyperpigmentation with dysgeusia and dysphagia: A case report. Int J Risk Saf Med. 2026; :9246479261441855. doi: 10.1177/09246479261441855. PubMed PMID:41964236 .
- Cascarina, SM, Paul, KR, Ford, LL, Ross, ED. A composition-matching algorithm, MatchIDR, identifies prion-like domains that localize to stress granules. Protein Sci. 2026;35 (5):e70567. doi: 10.1002/pro.70567. PubMed PMID:41944598 PubMed Central PMC13055198.
- Khenner, E, Morton, JL, Green, L, Yoder, A, Paul, K, Remmers, AE et al.. Retrospective chart review of immobilized lipase cartridge use in children with short bowel syndrome. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 2026; :. doi: 10.1002/jpn3.70426. PubMed PMID:41943464 .
- Mir, IA, Singh, I, Paul, K, Gupta, S, Butcher, RJ, Carmieli, R et al.. Investigation of ROS-mediated oxidative stress and membrane disruption caused by Cu(II)-isatin semicarbazone against S. aureus and A. calcoaceticus. Bioorg Chem. 2026;175 :109805. doi: 10.1016/j.bioorg.2026.109805. PubMed PMID:41936218 .
- Singla, N, Ahmad, M, Bhadwal, SS, Sahil,, Kaur, S, Kumar, S et al.. Multiresponsive solvatochromic fluorophores as viscosity and polarity sensors in solid and liquid state: Lipid droplet sensing in live cell imaging. Spectrochim Acta A Mol Biomol Spectrosc. 2026;357 :127797. doi: 10.1016/j.saa.2026.127797. PubMed PMID:41926814 .