Key 'sleep gene' found by scientists

A team of scientists reported in the August 14, 2009 issue of Science that they have discovered the first gene involved in regulating the optimal length of human sleep. They identified a mutated gene that allows a mother and daughter to thrive on 6 hours of sleep. This is an exception to most humans who need a minimum of eight hours sleep to maintain optimal health. Professor Ying-Hui Fu, senior author of the study, says that “this finding offers an opportunity to unravel the regulatory mechanism of sleep.” Although the mutation is rare, scientists believe it may be a key to further understanding the regulatory mechanisms of sleep quality and quantity. If successful this could lead to treatments that provide relief for pathologies associated with sleep disturbance.

In the current study a mother and daughter were discovered to have shorter daily sleep requirements than most individuals. Blood samples were taken from both women and studied in Fu’s lab. A mutation was identified in a gene known as hDEC2. To further discover the impact of the study, the scientists genetically engineered mice to express the mutated gene. They studied the impact on their behaviour and sleep patterns. Both the genetically engineered mice and normal mice were deprived of 6 hours of sleep. When comparing the response of the two, scientists found that the engineered mice did not need to compensate for their lost sleep as much as the normal mice. “These changes in the mutant mice could provide an explanation for why human subjects with the mutation are able to live unaffected by shorter amounts of sleep during their lives” says Fu. The professor says that the next step is to identify the exact role of DEC2, as well as any physiological conditions associated with the mutated gene.

The article is available from: http://esciencenews.com/articles/2009/08/13/first.human.gene.implicated.regulating.length.human.sleep
For more information about the discovery, see the following article:
http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-08-13-voa54.cfm