211–220 of 325 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Do sponges sleep?
Presumably. Some jellyfish sleep[1] But do fungi and Archea sleep? My guess based on what we read is yes and no. [1] https://www.science.org/content/article/if-alive-sleeps-brai...
Increasing the count and efficiency of mitochondria is gonna be a big deal. ME/CFS is caused by these organelles not working as they should.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Does it explain why we need sleep? My read was it explains why we get sleepy.
Iirc it is adenosine build up that makes us sleepy
Filling in the gaps: Mitochondria are less efficient due to electron leakage -> ATP gets consumed faster -> adenosine builds up faster
The first step is the new one.
So the ancient mystery of why we need sleep might have just been answered. The paper shows that cell‑autonomous mild uncoupling in Drosophila sleep‑inducing neurons -- via Ucp4A/Ucp4C -- keeps the flies awake by lowering mitochondrial Δp and therefore electron leak. This suggests a biochemical rationale for sleep -- which is postponed by the uncoupler. That form of pharmacological manipulation is also a very local in…
I'm curious how the few famous people that do not sleep at all, what's going on in their biochemestry? I don't mean celebrities, there are a few people who became famous because they do not sleep. They hold 2 complete careers, one during the day and one at night to keep from getting bored.
So the ancient mystery of why we need sleep might have just been answered. The paper shows that cell‑autonomous mild uncoupling in Drosophila sleep‑inducing neurons -- via Ucp4A/Ucp4C -- keeps the flies awake by lowering mitochondrial Δp and therefore electron leak. This suggests a biochemical rationale for sleep -- which is postponed by the uncoupler. That form of pharmacological manipulation is also a very local in…
Could this be an explanation for why people who go without sleep for long enough eventually just die? The Guinness Book of World Records doesn't accept records on staying awake for the same reason they don't accept records for the longest game of Russian Roulette.
While it is true that Guiness stopped keeping track of records of staying awake for health reasons, people with severe sleep deprivation ends up being psychotic and admitted to psychiatric care and administered sleep inducing drugs. So, lack of sleep is not something you die from short term. Long term (years, decades) short sleep is associated with higher all cause mortality risk though.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
> If you need oxygen, then you need sleep! Do plants sleep? Don't some insects, like flies, live without any sleep?
No, plants don't sleep, and neither do fungi or single celled organisms. Sleep seems to be a property specifically of animals.
So, what products would work as "sleep in a pill", at least on the "not being exhausted" part (I suppose the "not getting crazy because of lack of REM sleep" would be different) ?
Long-distance drivers and pilots on long missions have their drugs of choice (e.g., Modafinil), but they are crutches, not replacements.
There is good evidence that fur seals, rays, and some sharks have brain asymmetry in sleep, with half the brain sleeping while the other half keeps an eye open.
Unihemispheric sleep! Convenient.