Pies: Dogs engage in rapid-eye-movement when they sleep, and have dreams just like humans do

Evidence: 54 • authority: 72

Sleep spindles are bursts of neural oscillatory activity that are generated by interplay of the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) and other thalamic nuclei during stage 2 NREM sleep in a frequency range of ~11 to 16 Hz (usually 12–14 Hz) with a duration of 0.5 seconds or greater (usually 0.5–1.5 seconds). After generation as an interaction of the TRN neurons and thalamocortical cells, spindles are sustained and relayed to the cortex by thalamo-thalamic and thalamo-cortical feedback loops regulated by both GABAergic and NMDA-receptor mediated glutamatergic neurotransmission. Sleep spindles have been reported (at face value) for all tested mammalian species. Considering animals in which sleep-…

Evidence: 45 • authority: 92

Sleep and Dreams as Reflected by Science Fiction Literature and Films-Anything to Learn From?. Sleep and dreams are frequent themes in science fiction (Sci-Fi) literature and films, often used to explore questions about consciousness, reality, technology and the human experience. Sci-Fi authors and filmmakers utilise the enigmatic nature of sleep and dreams to blur the boundaries between reality and imagination, raising philosophical questions or extrapolating the effects of futuristic technologies on human life. In this article, we want to highlight some areas that have been recurring themes relating to sleep and dreams in Sci-Fi. These will include the concepts of so-called hypno-paedagog…

Evidence: 45 • authority: 72

Suvorexant, sold under the brand name Belsomra, is an orexin antagonist medication used in the treatment of insomnia. It is indicated specifically for the treatment of insomnia characterized by difficulties with sleep onset and/or maintenance in adults. Suvorexant helps with falling asleep faster, sleeping longer, being awake less in the middle of the night, and having better quality of sleep. Its effectiveness is modest, similar to that other orexin antagonists, but it is lower than that of benzodiazepines and Z-drugs. Suvorexant is taken orally. Side effects of suvorexant include somnolence, daytime sleepiness and sedation, headache, dizziness, abnormal dreams, dry mouth, and impaired nex…

Evidence: 45 • authority: 72

Sleep is broadly considered a biological necessity in virtually all animals. The large majority of such taxa with documented sleep physiology are bilaterians, though there is increasing evidence of sleep or sleep-like states in non-bilaterians such as Cassiopea jellyfish and hydra (both cnidarians), and sponges. The various criteria which biologists use to define sleep states have been observed in all other animal phyla, often with profound variation in function. In all of these taxa except sponges, regulation of sleep is documented to involve genes whose transcription oscillates with time, known as circadian or clock genes. These genes and the gene networks they regulate give rise to the i…

Evidence: 45 • authority: 92

To sleep and dream: Unraveling narcolepsy.. In an extraordinary convergence, Emmanuel Mignot and Masashi Yanagisawa employed two entirely different approaches to establish the pathogenesis of narcolepsy, a devastating sleep disorder associated with overwhelming sleep attacks, cataplexy, episodes with sudden loss of muscle tone, and hallucinations resulting from dreaming while awake. Yanagisawa purified brain ligands for orphan G protein-coupled receptors identifying a peptide, orexin, and then used reverse genetics to show that a knockout of the neuropeptide caused narcolepsy in mice. Mignot used forward genetics to identify genetic defects in the orexin receptor 2 in a hereditable form of…

Evidence: 45 • authority: 92

Association of brachycephaly, sleep-disordered breathing, and inflammatory response in dogs.. Sleep is fundamental to the welfare of all animals, including dogs. Various important processes take place during sleep, and while complete sleeplessness leads to death, sleep fragmentation is also harmful. Brachycephaly, the severely shortened snout and skull in the absence of a concurrent decrease in the volume of the soft tissues of the upper airways, causes many welfare concerns, including sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). In obstructive SDB, the most common form of SDB in dogs, repeated episodes of partial or complete blockages of airflow occur during sleep. This leads to intermittent hypoxemi…

Evidence: 45 • authority: 72

The dog (Canis familiaris or Canis lupus familiaris) is a domesticated descendant of wolves. Also called the domestic dog, it was selectively bred during the Late Pleistocene by hunter-gatherers. Dogs and the modern gray wolf share a common ancestor. Dogs were the first species to be domesticated over 14,000 years ago, before the development of agriculture, though genetic studies suggest the domestication process may have begun over 25,000 years ago. Due to their long association with humans, dogs have gained the ability to thrive on a starch-rich diet that would be inadequate for other canids. Dogs have been bred for specific behaviors, sensory abilities, and physical traits. Dog breeds va…

Evidence: — • authority: 38