Here’s the sleep news for this week:
Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences awarded to men who discovered the cause of narcolepsy
The Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences was awarded to Professor Emmanuel Mignot at Stanford University in the U.S. and Professor Masashi Yanagisawa at the University of Tsukuba in Japan, who discovered the causes of narcolepsy and started the process of discovering targeted treatment. Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder which affects one in 2,000 people and is characterized by extreme sleepiness and rapid transition into REM sleep, the sleep phase during which dreams occur. The researchers found that narcolepsy is caused by a gene that controls a receptor for the sleep-modulating neurotransmitter orexin.
Mignot treats several hundred people a year. He is also investigating the role of autoimmunity in other neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases.
Promising sleep apnea medication
A new study from Flinders University published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine has shown that Reboxetine, a drug previously used to treat depression, can reduce the severity of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). The study found that Reboxetine reduced OSA severity by 27% in men and 32% in women. Researchers hope that these findings can broaden the available treatment options for those with OSA.
Acetaminophen use during pregnancy may lead to child sleep problems
According to a new study by Penn State College of Medicine, acetaminophen use during pregnancy is associated with sleep and behavior problems consistent with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The study, which was the first to observe this association between acetaminophen and child sleep problems, found that of the women who used acetaminophen during pregnancy, approximately 23% described their child as having sleep problems and 33% described their children as having attention issues, as compared to 19% and 28% in women who did not use acetaminophen.
Sleep as a game-day strategy
Dealing with jet lag is always frustrating, but it can be detrimental for those traveling to engage in high-intensity sports. As the NFL’s Green Bay Packers and New York Giants travel to London to play this Sunday, the Giants coaching staff told players to get as much sleep as possible during their Thursday redeye flight. The annual game played in London is notorious for causing jet lag among players — some recall their bodies not really waking up until halfway through the game. The Giants are hoping to get ahead of this by prioritizing sleep on the plane and limiting naps on Friday to 30 to 45 minutes tops.
In sleep-centric social media...
This Tweet from Yvette Ratshikhopha perfectly describes the two types of people in this world: Those who can't sleep without a blanket and those who can.
