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Updated: Dec 8, 2025

Optogenetic Manipulation of Neural Circuits During Monitoring Sleep/wakefulness States in Mice
Published on: June 19, 2019
AANAT1 functions in astrocytes to regulate sleep homeostasis
Sejal Davla1,2,3, Gregory Artiushin4, Yongjun Li5
1Centre for Research in Neuroscience, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, Canada.
Abstract:
How the brain controls the need and acquisition of recovery sleep after prolonged wakefulness is an important issue in sleep research. The monoamines serotonin and dopamine are key regulators of sleep in mammals and in Drosophila. We found that the enzyme arylalkylamine N-acetyltransferase 1 (AANAT1) is expressed by Drosophila astrocytes and specific subsets of neurons in the adult brain. AANAT1 acetylates monoamines and inactivates them, and we found that AANAT1 limited the accumulation of serotonin and dopamine in the brain upon sleep deprivation (SD). Loss of AANAT1 from astrocytes, but not from neurons, caused flies to increase their daytime recovery sleep following overnight SD. Together, these findings demonstrate a crucial role for AANAT1 and astrocytes in the regulation of monoamine bioavailability and homeostatic sleep.
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