Cited by 280Sleep and Wakefulness ResearchNeurobiology and Insect Physiology ResearchCircadian rhythm and melatonin

Unearthing the phylogenetic roots of sleep

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Allada, Ravi, Siegel, Jerome M.·2008·Current Biology

Abstract

Why we sleep remains one of the enduring unanswered questions in biology. At its core, sleep can be defined behaviorally as a homeostatically regulated state of reduced movement and sensory responsiveness. The cornerstone of sleep studies in terrestrial mammals, including humans, has been the measurement of coordinated changes in brain activity during sleep measured using the electroencephalogram (EEG). Yet among a diverse set of animals, these EEG sleep traits can vary widely and, in some cases, are absent, raising questions as to whether they define a universal, or even essential, feature of sleep. Over the past decade, behaviorally defined sleep-like states have been identified in a series of genetic model organisms, including fish, flies and worms. Genetic analyses in these systems are revealing a remarkable conservation in the underlying mechanisms controlling sleep behavior. Taken together, these studies suggest an ancient origin for sleep and raise the possibility that model organism genetics may reveal the molecular mechanisms that guide sleep and wake.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.cub.2008.06.033

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  • The observation of behaviorally and mechanistically conserved sleep-like states across animals strongly supports an early rooted sleep state rather than many instances of convergent evolution.

    “The observation of behaviorally and mechanistically conserved sleep-like states across the animal kingdom [6,7] strongly supports the possibility for an early rooted sleep state rather than many instances of convergent evolution.”

    From The Jellyfish Cassiopea Exhibits a Sleep-like State (2017) · cites this paper as [6]

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Research works printed but not linked: 8

  1. [17]Lai YY Kodama T Siegel JM 2001 Changes in monoamine release linked to pontine inhibition of muscle tone: An in vivo microdialysis study J Neurosci 21 7384 7391 11549748 PMC6762984
  2. [29]Roffwarg HP Muzio JN Dement WC 1966 Ontogenetic development of the human sleep-dream cycle Science 152 604 619 17779492
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  4. [66]Mukhametov LM Lyamin OI Shpak OV Manger P Siegel JM 2002 Swimming styles and their relationship to rest and activity states in captive Commerson’s dolphins Proceedings of the 14th Biennial Conference on the Biology of Marine Mammals Vancouver Nov.27–Dec.3 152
  5. [68]Bonnet MH Kryger MH Roth T Dement WC 2000 Sleep Deprivation 3 Philadelphia W.B. Saunders 53 71
  6. [104]Toh KL Jones CR He Y Eide EJ Hinz WA Virshup DM Ptacek LJ Fu YH 2001 An hPer2 phosphorylation site mutation in familial advanced sleep phase syndrome Science 291 1040 1043 11232563
  7. [123]Mrosovsky N Redlin U Roberts RB Threadgill DW 2005 Masking in waved-2 mice: EGF receptor control of locomotion questioned Chronobiol Int 22 963 974 16393701
  8. [134]Siegel JM 1999 Narcolepsy: A key role for hypocretins (orexins) Cell 98 409 412 10481905 PMC8841059

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Authors
Allada, R., & Siegel, J. M.
Affiliations
  • Northwestern University (US)
  • University of California, Los Angeles (US)
Corresponding author
  • Allada, Ravi
  • Siegel, Jerome M.
Venue
Current Biology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2008-08
Volume
18
Issue
15
Pages
R670-R679
ISSN
0960-9822 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2021185182
Cited by
280
References
149
Citations by year
2026: 13 · 2025: 21 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 15 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 18 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 16 · 2014: 23 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 13
FWCI
0.89
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Current Biology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH064109, R01MH067870, R01MH64109)
  • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (R01NS042947, R01NS052903, 1R01-NS42947, R01NS059042)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Sleep and Wakefulness Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurobiology and Insect Physiology Research
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Circadian rhythm and melatonin
Keywords
sleep evolution, sleep-like state, sleep homeostasis, sleep-wake regulation, genetic model organisms, fish, Drosophila, Caenorhabditis elegans
MeSH terms
Animals, Behavior, Animal, Circadian Rhythm, Homeostasis, Humans, Phylogeny, Sleep, Species Specificity, Time Factors, Signal Transduction, Models, Animal

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