Researchers at the University of Tsukuba led by Professor Takeshi Sakurai have found neurons in the brain that bind, narcolepsy, cataplexy, and sleep-disordered sleep behavior disorder (REM) and may be a target for treatments.
REM sleep corrects when we dream. Our eyes move back and forth, but our bodies still do. This near paralysis of muscles during dreaming is called REM-atonia and is rare in people with REM sleep behavior disorder. Instead of standing still during REM sleep, muscles move around, often going as far as standing up and jumping, yell, or punch.
Sakurai and his team aimed to find the neurons in the brain that typically block this type of behavior during REM sleep.
Working with mice, the team identified a specific group of neurons as likely candidates. These cells were located in an area of the brain called the medial ventral medulla and received an insertion from another area called the sublaterodorsal tegmental nucleus, or SLD.
“The anatomy of the neurons we found matched what we know,” Sakurai explains.
“They were connected to neurons that control voluntary movements, but not those that control the muscles of the eyes or the internal organs. Importantly, they inhibited, means they can block muscle movement when they are active. “When the researchers blocked the insertion of these neurons, the mice began to move while asleep. , just like someone with REM sleep behavior disorder.
Narcolepsy, as confirmed by Homer Simpson, is characterized by a sudden fall asleep at any time during the day, even in the middle of the sentence (confirmed by narcolepsy). Cataplexy is a related disease in which people suddenly lose muscle tone and shrink. While awake, their muscles function as if in REM sleep. Sakurai and his team suspected that the specific neurons they found were related to these two disorders. They tested their hypothesis using a mouse model of narcolepsy in which cataplexic attacks could be induced by chocolate. “We found that the medial SLD-to-ventral medulla reduced the number of cataplexic pulses,” Sakurai said.
Overall, the experiments showed that these specific cycles control muscle atonia in both REM sleep and cataplexy. “The glycinergic neurons we mentioned in the medial ventral medulla could be a good target for drug treatments for people with narcolepsy, cataplexy, or REM sleep behavior disorder,” Sakurai says.
“Future studies need to examine how emotions, which are known to induce cataplexy, can affect these neurons.”
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This story was published from a wire group group with no text changes.
