“When fruit flies endure sleeplessness, cells in their guts accumulate toxic molecules that break down their DNA. Similar toxins were spotted in sleep-deprived mice. And when the sleepless flies were given antioxidants that prevent such build-up, they reached a normal fly life span. “‘They’re alive!’ And not only were they alive, they looked good,” says developmental neuroscientist Dragana Rogulja. The results suggest that although most sleep studies focus on the brain, lack of sleep kills by damaging other organs.”
Highlights
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Sleep deprivation leads to ROS accumulation in the fly and mouse gut
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Gut-accumulated ROS trigger oxidative stress in this organ
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Preventing ROS accumulation in the gut allows survival without sleep in flies
Reference: https://www.cell.com/cell/pdf/S0092-8674(20)30555-9.pdf
