Updates Regarding Neurocircuits and Neurotransmitters Involved in the Regulation of Wakefulness

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Medical Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt

2 Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Sohag University, Sohag, Egypt.

3 Physiology department, Faculty of medicine, Sohag University, Sohag Egypt

4 Physiology Department, faculty of medicine, Al-Azhar University Assuit branch, Assuit, Egypt

Abstract

Sleep is a universal phenomenon that observed not only in humans but also in birds, fishes and flies even in simpler organisms such as worms also we spend about 8 hours each day in sleep that represents nearly one third of our life. All these observations indicate a physiological importance of sleep. To start the study of sleep mechanism requires at first study the mechanisms, neurocircuits and neurotransmitters involved in promotion of wakefulness. Observation of Von Economo in 1930 of patients affected by “encephalitis lethargica”, an epidemic that causes widespread and prolonged sleepiness most of the day, opened the door for the study of the brain regions responsible for wakefulness. Researchers recognized now many brain regions that are responsible for wakefulness and other brain region responsible for the induction of different types of sleep. This review will try to discuss the most recent mechanisms and neural circuits involved in promotion of wakefulness.

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