Mitochondria's Role in Sleep: Novel Insights from Sleep Deprivation and Restriction Studies.

RESULTS Using various models of sleep deprivation, animal studies support the involvement of mitochondria in sleep via differential gene and protein expression patterns, OXPHOS enzyme activity, and morphology changes. Human studies are more limited but also show differences in OXPHOS enzyme activity and protein levels among individuals with who have undergone sleep deprivation or suffer from different forms of insomnia. CONCLUSION Taken altogether, both types of study provide evidence for mitochondria's involvement in the sleep-wake cycle. We briefly discuss the potential clinical implications of these studies.