Warming up for sleep? - ground squirrels sleep during arousals from hibernation

Hypothermia during mammalian hibernation is periodically interrupted by arousals to euthermy, the function of which is unknown. We report that arctic ground squirrels (Spermophilus parryii) consistently sleep during these arousals, and that their EEG shows the decrease in slow wave activity (delta-p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Neuroscience Letters
Main Authors: Daan, Serge, Barnes, Brian M., Strijkstra, Arjen M.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 1991
Subjects:
SLEEP
HIBERNATION
TORPOR
GROUND SQUIRREL
PERIODIC AROUSAL
EEG POWER DENSITY
SPERMOPHILUS-LATERALIS
Arctic
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11370/22fb6468-7fda-4d3f-9114-4e417dfb6ebc
https://research.rug.nl/en/publications/warming-up-for-sleep--ground-squirrels-sleep-during-arousals-from-hibernation(22fb6468-7fda-4d3f-9114-4e417dfb6ebc).html
https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-3940(91)90276-Y
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Summary:Hypothermia during mammalian hibernation is periodically interrupted by arousals to euthermy, the function of which is unknown. We report that arctic ground squirrels (Spermophilus parryii) consistently sleep during these arousals, and that their EEG shows the decrease in slow wave activity (delta-power) that is characteristic of a declining requirement for sleep. These results are consistent with the novel hypothesis that the need for sleep slowly accumulates during torpor, and that returning to euthermy is periodically required to allow sleep. Sleep thus seems to be energetically expensive for a hibernating mammal, and cannot be considered solely a strategy for saving energy.

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