Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-2014

Publication Source

Behavioral Neuroscience

Volume Number

128

Issue Number

3

First Page

250

Last Page

263

Publisher

American Psychological Association

ISSN

0735-7044

Comments

©American Psychological Association, 2014. This paper is not the copy of record and may not exactly replicate the authoritative document published in the APA journal. Please do not copy or cite without author's permission. The final article is available, upon publication, at: https://doi.apa.org/doi/10.1037/a0035891

Abstract

Despite the predominance of sleep in early infancy, developmental science has yet to play a major role in shaping concepts and theories about sleep and its associated ultradian and circadian rhythms. Here we argue that developmental analyses help us to elucidate the relative contributions of the brainstem and forebrain to sleep-wake control and to dissect the neural components of sleep-wake rhythms. Developmental analysis also makes it clear that sleep-wake processes in infants are the foundation for those of adults. For example, the infant brainstem alone contains a fundamental sleep-wake circuit that is sufficient to produce transitions among wakefulness, quiet sleep, and active sleep. In addition, consistent with the requirements of a "flip-flop" model of sleep-wake processes, this brainstem circuit supports rapid transitions between states. Later in development, strengthening bidirectional interactions between the brainstem and forebrain contribute to the consolidation of sleep and wake bouts, the elaboration of sleep homeostatic processes, and the emergence of diurnal or nocturnal circadian rhythms. The developmental perspective promoted here critically constrains theories of sleep-wake control and provides a needed framework for the creation of fully realized computational models. Finally, with a better understanding of how this system is constructed developmentally, we will gain insight into the processes that govern its disintegration due to aging and disease.

Keywords

circadian rhythm, ultradian rhythm, nocturnal, diurnal, sleep homeostasis, fragmentation, consolidation, suprachiasmatic nucleus, brainstem, hypothalamus, development, flip-flop, sleep switch, sleep disorders, Norway rat, Nile grass rat

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