Why We Sleep: The Temporal Organization of Recovery

Why we sleep seems like a simple question, yet it has baffled scientists for generations. Based on recent data, Emmanuel Mignot argues that the function of sleep is essentially a resilient form of cellular recovery, organized anatomically and temporally by natural evolution, that has taken on additional functions over time.

[1]  P. K. Mccowan.  Encephalitis Lethargica: Its Sequelœ and Treatment , 1932 .

[2]  M. Jouvet,et al.  [Electromyographic correlations of sleep in the chronic decorticate & mesencephalic cat]. , 1959, Comptes rendus des seances de la Societe de biologie et de ses filiales.

[3]  A. Karczmar,et al.  A pharmacological model of paradoxical sleep: the role of cholinergic and monoamine systems. , 1970, Physiology & behavior.

[4]  J. Walker,et al.  Sleep as an adaptation for energy conservation functionally related to hibernation and shallow torpor. , 1980, Progress in brain research.

[5]  A. Borbély.  A two process model of sleep regulation. , 1982, Human neurobiology.

[6]  Scott S. Campbell,et al.  Animal sleep: A review of sleep duration across phylogeny , 1984, Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews.

[7]  C. H. Vanderwolf,et al.  Thalamic control of neocortical activation: A critical re-evaluation , 1988, Brain Research Bulletin.

[8]  G. Buzsáki,et al.  Nucleus basalis and thalamic control of neocortical activity in the freely moving rat , 1988, The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience.

[9]  A. Rechtschaffen,et al.  Sleep deprivation in the rat: X. Integration and discussion of the findings. , 2002, Sleep.

[10]  M. Kryger,et al.  Principles and Practice of Sleep Medicine , 1989 .

[11]  Mark C. Jones.  PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF SLEEP MEDICINE , 1990 .

[12]  P. Ramm,et al.  Rates of cerebral protein synthesis are linked to slow wave sleep in the rat , 1990, Physiology & Behavior.

[13]  Long-term sleep deprivation as a game The wear and tear of wakefulness , 1992, Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery.

[14]  P. Maquet,et al.  Cerebral glucose utilization during stage 2 sleep in man , 1992, Brain Research.

[15]  R. McCarley,et al.  Neurobiological structure of the revised limit cycle reciprocal interaction model of REM cycle control , 1992, Journal of sleep research.

[16]  DM Edgar,et al.  Effect of SCN lesions on sleep in squirrel monkeys: evidence for opponent processes in sleep-wake regulation , 1993, The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience.

[17]  Richard T. Marrocco,et al.  Arousal systems , 1994, Current Opinion in Neurobiology.

[18]  A. Karni,et al.  Dependence on REM sleep of overnight improvement of a perceptual skill. , 1994, Science.

[19]  D.G.M. Dijk,et al.  Contribution of the circadian pacemaker and the sleep homeostat to sleep propensity, sleep structure, electroencephalographic slow waves, and sleep spindle activity in humans , 1995, The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience.

[20]  E. Mignot,et al.  Muscle atonia is triggered by cholinergic stimulation of the basal forebrain: implication for the pathophysiology of canine narcolepsy , 1995, The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience.

[21]  J. Siegel.  Phylogeny and the function of REM sleep , 1995, Behavioural Brain Research.

[22]  Irene Tobler,et al.  Is sleep fundamentally different between mammalian species? , 1995, Behavioural Brain Research.

[23]  H. Craig Heller,et al.  Restoration of brain energy metabolism as the function of sleep , 1995, Progress in Neurobiology.

[24]  J. Pettigrew,et al.  The Echidna Tachyglossus aculeatus Combines REM and Non-REM Aspects in a Single Sleep State: Implications for the Evolution of Sleep , 1996, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[25]  K. Lovblad,et al.  Hypersomnia following paramedian thalamic stroke: A report of 12 patients , 1996, Annals of neurology.

[26]  D. Edgar,et al.  Modafinil induces wakefulness without intensifying motor activity or subsequent rebound hypersomnolence in the rat. , 1997, The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics.

[27]  Peter Achermann,et al.  Selective REM sleep deprivation in humans: effects on sleep and sleep EEG. , 1998, American journal of physiology. Regulatory, integrative and comparative physiology.

[28]  R. Szymusiak,et al.  Sleep–waking discharge of neurons in the posterior lateral hypothalamus of the albino rat , 1999, Brain Research.

[29]  Axel Cleeremans,et al.  Experience-dependent changes in cerebral activation during human REM sleep , 2000, Nature Neuroscience.

[30]  C. Weitz,et al.  Regulation of Daily Locomotor Activity and Sleep by Hypothalamic EGF Receptor Signaling , 2001, Science.

[31]  A. Sehgal,et al.  A non-circadian role for cAMP signaling and CREB activity in Drosophila rest homeostasis , 2001, Nature Neuroscience.

[32]  Giulio Tononi,et al.  Sleep and the fruit fly , 2001, Trends in Neurosciences.

[33]  E. Mignot.  A hundred years of narcolepsy research. , 2001, Archives italiennes de biologie.

[34]  R. Stafford,et al.  Principles and Practice of Sleep Medicine , 2001 .

[35]  I. Sora,et al.  Dopaminergic Role in Stimulant-Induced Wakefulness , 2001, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[36]  I. Zhdanova,et al.  Melatonin promotes sleep-like state in zebrafish 1 1 Published on the World Wide Web on 6 April 2001. , 2001, Brain Research.

[37]  S Laureys,et al.  Experience-dependent changes in cerebral functional connectivity during human rapid eye movement sleep , 2001, Neuroscience.

[38]  Yoshiyuki Sakaki,et al.  Circadian Rhythms in Isolated Brain Regions , 2002, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[39]  H. Giedke,et al.  Therapeutic use of sleep deprivation in depression. , 2002, Sleep medicine reviews.

[40]  J. Röschke,et al.  Effects of REM sleep awakenings and related wakening paradigms on the ultradian sleep cycle and the symptoms in depression. , 2002, Journal of psychiatric research.

[41]  A. Rechtschaffen,et al.  Sleep deprivation in the rat: X. Integration and discussion of the findings. 1989. , 2002, Sleep.

[42]  J. Hobson,et al.  The cognitive neuroscience of sleep: neuronal systems, consciousness and learning , 2002, Nature Reviews Neuroscience.

[43]  B. Zheng,et al.  Homeostatic sleep regulation is preserved in mPer1 and mPer2 mutant mice , 2002, The European journal of neuroscience.

[44]  M. Modirrousta,et al.  Alpha 2 adrenergic receptors on GABAergic, putative sleep‐promoting basal forebrain neurons , 2003, The European journal of neuroscience.

[45]  Jeffrey C. Hall,et al.  Genetics and molecular biology of rhythms in Drosophila and other insects. , 2003, Advances in genetics.

[46]  D. Dinges,et al.  The cumulative cost of additional wakefulness: dose-response effects on neurobehavioral functions and sleep physiology from chronic sleep restriction and total sleep deprivation. , 2003, Sleep.

[47]  C. Weitz,et al.  Regulation of daily locomotor activity and sleep by hypothalamic EGF receptor signalling. , 2003, Novartis Foundation symposium.

[48]  Vijay Kumar Sharma,et al.  Adaptive Significance of Circadian Clocks , 2003, Chronobiology international.

[49]  A. Pack,et al.  Genetic evidence for a role of CREB in sustained cortical arousal. , 2003, Journal of neurophysiology.

[50]  Pietro Cortelli,et al.  Familial and sporadic fatal insomnia , 2003, The Lancet Neurology.

[51]  G. E. Duffield,et al.  DNA Microarray Analyses of Circadian Timing: The Genomic Basis of Biological Time , 2003, Journal of neuroendocrinology.

[52]  P. L. Parmeggiani,et al.  Thermoregulation and sleep. , 2003, Frontiers in bioscience : a journal and virtual library.

[53]  J. Takahashi,et al.  Mammalian circadian biology: elucidating genome-wide levels of temporal organization. , 2004, Annual review of genomics and human genetics.

[54]  P. Manger,et al.  Testing thermogenesis as the basis for the evolution of cetacean sleep phenomenology , 2004, Journal of sleep research.

[55]  G. Grigg,et al.  The Evolution of Endothermy and Its Diversity in Mammals and Birds , 2004, Physiological and Biochemical Zoology.

[56]  Reto Huber,et al.  Migratory Sleeplessness in the White-Crowned Sparrow (Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii) , 2004, PLoS biology.

[57]  G. Tononi,et al.  Uncoupling proteins and sleep deprivation. , 2004, Archives italiennes de biologie.

[58]  Hiroaki Kitano,et al.  Biological robustness , 2008, Nature Reviews Genetics.

[59]  G. Tononi,et al.  Extensive and Divergent Effects of Sleep and Wakefulness on Brain Gene Expression , 2004, Neuron.

[60]  D. Dinges,et al.  Systematic interindividual differences in neurobehavioral impairment from sleep loss: evidence of trait-like differential vulnerability. , 2004, Sleep.

[61]  M. Modirrousta,et al.  Gabaergic neurons with α2-adrenergic receptors in basal forebrain and preoptic area express c-Fos during sleep , 2004, Neuroscience.

[62]  H. Heller,et al.  Sleep and circadian rhythms in mammalian torpor. , 2004, Annual review of physiology.

[63]  P. Maquet.  A role for sleep in the processing of memory traces. Contribution of functional neuroimaging in humans. , 2004, Bulletin et memoires de l'Academie royale de medecine de Belgique.

[64]  M. Boly,et al.  Regional organisation of brain activity during paradoxical sleep (PS). , 2004, Archives italiennes de biologie.

[65]  C. Saper,et al.  Hypothalamic regulation of sleep and circadian rhythms , 2005, Nature.

[66]  J. Siegel.  Clues to the functions of mammalian sleep , 2005, Nature.

[67]  N. Rattenborg,et al.  Acute effects of light and darkness on sleep in the pigeon (Columba livia) , 2005, Physiology & Behavior.

[68]  Giulio Tononi,et al.  Sleep and wakefulness modulate gene expression in Drosophila , 2005, Journal of neurochemistry.

[69]  R. Greenspan,et al.  Dopaminergic Modulation of Arousal in Drosophila , 2005, Current Biology.

[70]  J. Siegel,et al.  Animal behaviour: Continuous activity in cetaceans after birth , 2005, Nature.

[71]  Giulio Tononi,et al.  Reduced sleep in Drosophila Shaker mutants , 2005, Nature.

[72]  Mark W. Mahowald,et al.  Insights from studying human sleep disorders , 2005, Nature.

[73]  Barbara E. Jones,et al.  Basic Mechanisms of Sleep-Wake States , 2005 .

[74]  R. Stickgold.  Sleep-dependent memory consolidation , 2005, Nature.

[75]  H. Staunton,et al.  Mammalian sleep , 2005, Naturwissenschaften.

[76]  Irene Tobler,et al.  Chapter 7 – Phylogeny of Sleep Regulation , 2005 .

[77]  J. Siegel.  Chapter 10 – REM Sleep , 2005 .

[78]  M. Steriade.  Brain Electrical Activity and Sensory Processing during Waking and Sleep States , 2005 .

[79]  G. Gnone,et al.  Sleep behaviour: Activity and sleep in dolphins , 2006, Nature.

[80]  G. Tononi,et al.  Arm immobilization causes cortical plastic changes and locally decreases sleep slow wave activity , 2006, Nature Neuroscience.

[81]  S. Kohshima,et al.  Sleep behaviour: Sleep in continuously active dolphins , 2006, Nature.

[82]  Alexander F. Schier,et al.  Hypocretin/Orexin Overexpression Induces An Insomnia-Like Phenotype in Zebrafish , 2006, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[83]  C. Peyron,et al.  Gene expression in the rat brain during sleep deprivation and recovery sleep: an Affymetrix GeneChip® study , 2006, Neuroscience.

[84]  Ueli Schibler,et al.  Properties, Entrainment, and Physiological Functions of Mammalian Peripheral Oscillators , 2006, Journal of biological rhythms.

[85]  C. Saper.  Staying awake for dinner: hypothalamic integration of sleep, feeding, and circadian rhythms. , 2006, Progress in brain research.

[86]  Jian-Sheng Lin,et al.  Neuronal Activity of Histaminergic Tuberomammillary Neurons During Wake–Sleep States in the Mouse , 2006, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[87]  Paul J Shaw,et al.  Waking Experience Affects Sleep Need in Drosophila , 2006, Science.

[88]  C. Saper,et al.  A putative flip–flop switch for control of REM sleep , 2006, Nature.

[89]  C. Cirelli.  Cellular consequences of sleep deprivation in the brain. , 2006, Sleep medicine reviews.

[90]  J. Born,et al.  Sleep to Remember , 2006, The Neuroscientist : a review journal bringing neurobiology, neurology and psychiatry.

[91]  I. Zhdanova,et al.  Sleep in zebrafish. , 2006, Zebrafish.

[92]  G. Tononi,et al.  Sleep function and synaptic homeostasis. , 2006, Sleep medicine reviews.

[93]  Benjamin H. White,et al.  Sleep in Drosophila is regulated by adult mushroom bodies , 2006, Nature.

[94]  Shane T. Jensen,et al.  Macromolecule biosynthesis: a key function of sleep. , 2007, Physiological genomics.

[95]  Kwang-Hyun Cho,et al.  Analysis of feedback loops and robustness in network evolution based on Boolean models , 2007, BMC Bioinformatics.

[96]  Priyattam J Shiromani,et al.  Effects of Saporin-Induced Lesions of Three Arousal Populations on Daily Levels of Sleep and Wake , 2007, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[97]  H. Heller,et al.  A non-circadian role for clock-genes in sleep homeostasis:a strain comparison , 2007, BMC Neuroscience.

[98]  Emmanuel Mignot,et al.  Characterization of Sleep in Zebrafish and Insomnia in Hypocretin Receptor Mutants , 2007, PLoS biology.

[99]  E. Mignot,et al.  Sleep/wake fragmentation disrupts metabolism in a mouse model of narcolepsy , 2007, The Journal of physiology.

[100]  E. van Cauter,et al.  The metabolic consequences of sleep deprivation. , 2007, Sleep medicine reviews.

[101]  Johanna H Meijer,et al.  Long term effects of sleep deprivation on the mammalian circadian pacemaker. , 2007, Sleep.

[102]  S. Pradervand,et al.  Homer1a is a core brain molecular correlate of sleep loss , 2007, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[103]  Seung-Schik Yoo,et al.  A deficit in the ability to form new human memories without sleep , 2007, Nature Neuroscience.

[104]  S. Frank.  Title Maladaptation and the Paradox of Robustness in Evolution Permalink , 2007 .

[105]  D. R. Euston,et al.  Fast-Forward Playback of Recent Memory Sequences in Prefrontal Cortex During Sleep , 2007, Science.

[106]  Giulio Tononi,et al.  Drosophila Hyperkinetic Mutants Have Reduced Sleep and Impaired Memory , 2007, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[107]  D. Dinges,et al.  Behavioral and physiological consequences of sleep restriction. , 2007, Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

[108]  Giulio Tononi,et al.  Sleep in Kcna2 knockout mice , 2007, BMC Biology.

[109]  Xiao‐Bing Gao,et al.  Prolonged wakefulness induces experience-dependent synaptic plasticity in mouse hypocretin/orexin neurons. , 2007, The Journal of clinical investigation.

[110]  F. Turek,et al.  Repeated sleep restriction in rats leads to homeostatic and allostatic responses during recovery sleep , 2007, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

[111]  Marcus Kaiser,et al.  Brain architecture: a design for natural computation , 2007, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences.

[112]  A. Kohsaka,et al.  A sense of time: how molecular clocks organize metabolism , 2007, Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism.

[113]  Dennis McGinty,et al.  The Median Preoptic Nucleus Reciprocally Modulates Activity of Arousal-Related and Sleep-Related Neurons in the Perifornical Lateral Hypothalamus , 2007, The Journal of Neuroscience.

[114]  G. Tononi,et al.  TMS-Induced Cortical Potentiation during Wakefulness Locally Increases Slow Wave Activity during Sleep , 2007, PloS one.

[115]  Leonie Welberg,et al.  Awakenings , 1977, Nature Reviews Neuroscience.

[116]  M. Rosbash,et al.  Modulation of GABAA receptor desensitization uncouples sleep onset and maintenance in Drosophila , 2008, Nature Neuroscience.

[117]  Chiara Cirelli,et al.  Molecular correlates of sleep and wakefulness in the brain of the white‐crowned sparrow , 2008, Journal of neurochemistry.

[118]  David M. Raizen,et al.  Lethargus is a Caenorhabditis elegans sleep-like state , 2008, Nature.

[119]  G. Tononi,et al.  Molecular and electrophysiological evidence for net synaptic potentiation in wake and depression in sleep , 2008, Nature Neuroscience.

[120]  M. D. Bono,et al.  Dispatches Sleep : Dozy Worms and Sleepy Flies , 2022 .