The effects of caffeine on sleep and maturational markers in the rat.

Nadja Olini
Salomé Kurth
Reto Huber

Open link

DOI

10.1371/journal.pone.0072539

Publisher

Public Library of Science (PLoS)

Journal

issn:1932-6203

Abstract

Adolescence is a critical period for brain maturation during which a massive reorganization of cortical connectivity takes place. In humans, slow wave activity (<4.5 Hz) during NREM sleep was proposed to reflect cortical maturation which relies on use-dependent processes. A stimulant like caffeine, whose consumption has recently increased especially in adolescents, is known to affect sleep wake regulation. The goal of this study was to establish a rat model allowing to assess the relationship between cortical maturation and sleep and to further investigate how these parameters are affected by caffeine consumption. To do so, we assessed sleep and markers of maturation by electrophysiological recordings, behavioral and structural readouts in ...