During REM sleep \u2014 the deep sleep where most recalled dreams occur \u2014 your eyes continue to move but the rest of the body\u2019s muscles are stopped, potentially to prevent injury. In a series of experiments, University of Toronto neuroscientists Patricia L. Brooks and John H. Peever, PhD, found that the neurotransmitters gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glycine caused REM sleep paralysis in rats by \u201cswitching off\u201d the specialized cells in the brain that allow muscles to be active<\/strong>. This finding reversed earlier beliefs that glycine was a lone inhibitor of these motor neurons.<\/p>\n \u201cThe study\u2019s findings are relevant to anyone who has ever watched a sleeping pet twitch, gotten kicked by a bed partner, or has known someone with the sleep disorder narcolepsy,\u201d said Dennis J. McGinty, PhD, a behavioral neuroscientist and sleep researcher at the University of California, Los Angeles, who was not involved in the study. \u201cBy identifying the neurotransmitters and receptors involved in sleep-related paralysis, this study points us to possible molecular targets for developing treatments for sleep-related motor disorders, which can often be debilitating,\u201d he said<\/p>\n The researchers measured electrical activity in the facial muscles responsible for chewing of sleeping rats. Brain cells called trigeminal motor neurons communicate the brain\u2019s message to move to these muscles. Previous research suggested neurotransmitter receptors called ionotropic GABAA<\/sub>\/glycine receptors in the motor neurons caused REM sleep paralysis. However, when the researchers blocked these receptors, REM sleep paralysis still occurred.<\/p>\n The researchers found that to prevent REM sleep paralysis, they had to block both the ionotropic receptors and<\/em> metabotropic GABAB <\/sub>receptors, a different receptor system.\u00a0 In other words, when the motor cells were cut off from all sources of GABA and glycine, the paralysis did not occur, allowing the rats to exhibit high levels of muscle activity when their muscles should have been inactive. The data suggest the two neurotransmitters must both be present together to maintain motor control during sleep, rather than working separately.<\/p>\n The finding could be especially helpful for those with REM sleep disorder, a disease that causes people to act out their dreams<\/strong>. This can cause serious injuries to patients and others around them. It is also often an early indicator of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson\u2019s.<\/p>\n \u201cUnderstanding the precise mechanism behind these chemicals\u2019 role in REM sleep disorder is particularly important because about 80 percent of people who have it eventually develop a neurodegenerative disease, such as Parkinson\u2019s disease<\/strong>,\u201d study author Peever added. \u201cREM sleep behavior disorder could be an early marker of these diseases, and curing it may help prevent or even stop their development,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n This study was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the National Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" From the University of Toronto press release: Two powerful brain chemical systems work together to paralyze skeletal muscles during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, according to new research in the… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10,6],"tags":[42,248,362],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4543"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4543"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4543\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4545,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4543\/revisions\/4545"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4543"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4543"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4543"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"http:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/images\/blogpics\/Sleep3.jpg\" "\\"sleep\\"")
Two powerful brain chemical systems work together to paralyze skeletal muscles during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep<\/strong>, according to new research in the July 11 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience<\/em>. The finding may help scientists better understand and treat sleep disorders, including narcolepsy, tooth grinding, and REM sleep behavior disorder.<\/p>\n