A special supplement to the journal Neurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms recognizes Washington State University Regents Professor James M. Krueger’s groundbreaking contributions to the field of sleep research.
Titled “Festschrift in Honor of JM Krueger’s Research,” the supplement features 10 peer-reviewed articles authored by Krueger’s colleagues and former trainees, including several faculty members from the WSU Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine.
The supplement, available online and free to access, reflects the far-reaching impact of Krueger’s decades-long career investigating the mechanisms and functions of sleep. His work has fundamentally shaped the understanding of how sleep is regulated at the molecular and cellular levels, and how it contributes to overall health and brain function.
“In a career spanning five decades, Prof. James M. Krueger has made—and continues to make—pivotal discoveries regarding the organization and regulation of sleep in health and disease,” wrote WSU College of Medicine Professor Hans Van Dongen with fellow editors in a foreword.
Krueger joined the WSU faculty in 1997 and currently holds appointments in the College of Medicine and the College of Veterinary Medicine. He was named a WSU Regents Professor in 2007 and Eminent Professor, the highest award given to WSU faculty, in 2010.
Over the course of his career, Krueger has authored more than 300 scientific publications and received numerous accolades, including the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Sleep Research Society and the Senator Jacob Javits Award in the Neurosciences from the National Institutes of Health.
Krueger’s research has led to key discoveries regarding the sleep regulatory role of cytokines, small proteins also involved in cell signaling and inflammation. He was the first to assert that sleep is not just a property of the whole brain, but rather a local, use-dependent process regulated at the level of small groups of neurons. His lab’s discoveries have helped establish the now widely accepted view that sleep is not merely a passive state but an active, regulated process essential for brain plasticity, immune function, and overall health.
The special supplement includes contributions from researchers across the globe who have built upon Krueger’s foundational work. Two of the articles, along with the foreword, were authored by College of Medicine faculty, underscoring the continued influence of his mentorship within the WSU community.
“Jim’s legacy is not only in the science he has produced but also in the many scientists he has inspired and trained,” said Van Dongen. “This Festschrift is a fitting tribute to a career that has profoundly shaped our understanding of sleep.”
Department of Translational Medicine and Physiology Professor Dr. Éva Szentirmai and Associate Professor Dr. Levente Kapás, both core faculty members of the WSU Sleep and Performance Research Center (SPRC), contributed a paper about the role of metabolic signals in sleep regulation.
Van Dongen, also a core faculty member of the SPRC, authored an article examining the local, use-dependent aspect of sleep regulation and what it means for our understanding of the functions of sleep.
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