From organisms as simple as worms to those as complex as humans, sleep is a fundamental necessity. But although an estimated 50 to 70 million people in the United States suffer from a chronic sleep disorder, the genetic mechanisms that regulate human sleep remain poorly understood. Now, Caltech scientists have identified a genetic pathway that is necessary and sufficient for proper sleep in zebrafish and appears to also regulate sleep in humans. This pathway regulates levels of a particular neural compound that could one day be a therapeutic target for sleep disorders, including insomnia.
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