Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 16, 2026

Polygraphic Recording Procedure for Measuring Sleep in Mice
Published on: January 25, 2016
[The serotoninergic mechanism and the experimental therapy of sleep disorders in desynchronization]
Abstract:
The authors studied the dynamics of changes in the serotonin content in the brain of albino rats in development of experimental neurosis along the type of desynchronization and under the effect of essential amino acid L-tryptophan. It was found that disturbance in the sleep-awake cycle in desynchronization is attended with decrease in the serotonin level in the hemispheres and brain stem and leveling out the interhemispheric asymmetry. Injection of 80 mg/kg L-tryptophan in this condition leads to increase of the brain serotonin content and restoration of the normal physiological structure of the sleep-awake cycle.
Related Concept Videos
Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitter Release or Uptake
Antidepressant Drugs: Tricyclics, SSRIs, and SNRIs
Antidepressant Drugs: MAOIs and Other Agents
Sedatives and Hypnotics: Overview
Sedative-hypnotics are categorized into barbiturates, benzodiazepines (BZDs), and non-benzodiazepines or Z-drugs. These drugs work by suppressing central nervous system activity, and this suppression is dose-dependent. Older sedative medications, like barbiturates, follow a linear curve in...
Management of Insomnia
Sedatives and Hypnotics Drugs: Miscellaneous Agents
Melatonin congeners like ramelteon (Rozerem) and tasimelteon (Hetlioz) selectively bind to melatonin receptors (MT1 and MT2) and thus mimic the actions of melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep-wake cycles. Tasimelteon is primarily used for non-24-hour sleep-wake disorder, common in blind patients. They are also used to treat conditions like insomnia...

