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Updated: Feb 4, 2026

Assaying Locomotor Activity to Study Circadian Rhythms and Sleep Parameters in Drosophila
Published on: September 28, 2010
Sleep, Circadian Rhythms, and Epilepsy
Joseph T Daley1,2, Jennifer L DeWolfe3,4
1UAB Epilepsy Center, Department of Neurology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1719 6th Avenue South, 312 CIRC, Birmingham, AL, 35294, USA.
Purpose Of Review:
There is a known interrelationship between sleep and epilepsy. This review highlights the recent findings regarding interactions between sleep and circadian rhythms and the manifestations of epilepsy and surgical treatments for refractory epilepsy.
Recent Findings:
CLOCK gene expression may be reduced within the epileptogenic focus in patients with refractory epilepsy. Interictal epileptiform discharges during NREM and especially REM sleep may lateralize to the epileptogenic hemisphere. Intracranial video EEG monitoring and EEG from implanted responsive neurostimulator devices confirm scalp video EEG findings of a nocturnal peak for interictal epileptiform discharges. Successful epilepsy surgery may improve sleep macrostructure and quality. Sleep outcomes in people with epilepsy undergoing epilepsy surgery and neurostimulator implantation may provide innovative understandings into the associations between sleep and epilepsy. These associations may then provide novel therapeutic options targeting sleep and circadian pathways to improve seizure control and improve the quality of life for patients with this debilitating disorder.
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