Chronic Ro 15-1788 treatment increases REM sleep in rats

Administration of Ro 15-1788, a benzodiazepine antagonist (3.6 mg/kg/day in drinking water for 14 days), increased total sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep in rats. Standard six-hour EEG recording periods were obtained on day 0, 1, 3, 7, 10, 14, as well as 24 and 72 hours following withdrawal. Enhanced REM sleep reached significance on day 7 of continuous drug treatment and remained significantly increased on day 10 and 14, as well as at 24 and 72 hours following drug withdrawal. The present data show that chronic administration of Ro 15-1788 increases total sleep time due to increases in REM sleep. The actions of Ro 15-1788 presumably occur through either adenosinergic or cholinergic mechanisms.