Our brain controls how our body functions. Even our sleep patterns are largely controlled by the brain. Now the brain's master clock that regulates sleep cycle has been discovered.
This master clock of the brain is rather small. Only a few thousand of those brain cells control the sleep and wake cycle of a person. That portion is so small that its size is like that of a mustard seed. A study made on mice shows just how this small portion of the brain can control a person's sleep and wake cycle.
The study has been made by researchers from the John Hopkins University School of Medicine. Seth Blackshaw, Ph.D. is lead author of the study and a Professor of Neuroscience. The portion of the brain that is called the master clock is called the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN). Blackshaw has noted that the SCN requires light in order to control a person's sleep cycle.
The SCN has been known to control the sleep cycle of a person. However, it is not yet understood how the SCN actually functions when light is involved. A person sleeping can be awakened when light goes on, and the SCN controls that function. To test that, Blackshaw has said that the SCN can be removed from mice through surgery, but then that would also affect the optic nerves as well, according to Science Daily.
Blackshaw and his team has found a way to remove SCN without surgery though. Instead, a genetic tool to take out the LHX1 gene, which is the gene that first turns on in the fetal SCN. When the team did that, it was noted that the mice had a disrupted sleep pattern, as News Wise reports. The SCN has also stopped producing six small signaling proteins that coordinate the sleep pattern.
The sleep time of the mice in the experiment has become random, whether there is light or not. Body temperature has also been affected by the removal of the LHX1 gene. Humans have a normal body temperature of 37 degrees Celsius, though this would fluctuate throughout the day. For mice without the gene, fluctuations in body temperature do not affect sleep pattern anymore.
Understanding how people sleep might help those who have sleeping problems. The study has shown that the brain's master clock that regulates the sleep cycle has been discovered. A study has shown that nutrition helps in brain health.
