To understand sleep mechanisms and develop treatments for sleep disorders, investigations
using animal models are essential. The sleep architecture of rodents differs from that of
diurnal mammals including humans and non-human primates. Sleep studies have been conducted
in non-human primates; however, these sleep assessments were performed on animals placed
in a restraint chair connected via the umbilical area to the recording apparatus. To avoid
restraints, cables, and other stressful apparatuses and manipulations, telemetry systems
have been developed. In the present study, sleep recordings in unrestrained cynomolgus
monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) and common marmoset monkeys
(Callithrix jacchus) were conducted to characterize normal sleep. For
the analysis of sleep–wake rhythms in cynomolgus monkeys, telemetry electroencephalography
(EEG), electromyography (EMG), and electrooculography (EOG) signals were used. For the
analysis of sleep–wake rhythms in marmosets, telemetry EEG and EOG signals were used. Both
monkey species showed monophasic sleep patterns during the dark phase. Although non-rapid
eye movement (NREM) deep sleep showed higher levels at the beginning of the dark phase in
cynomolgus monkeys, NREM deep sleep rarely occurred during the dark phase in marmosets.
Our results indicate that the use of telemetry in non-human primate models is useful for
sleep studies, and that the different NREM deep sleep activities between cynomolgus
monkeys and common marmoset monkeys are useful to examine sleep functions.
The most widely used animal models to develop sleep-disorder drugs are rodents, particularly rats and mice. However, unlike humans, these rodents are nocturnal. Thus, diurnal non-human primates represent a valuable and more translational animal model to study sleep. Although sleep-disorder drugs have been screened in nonhuman primates, the use of a telemetry system is not a desirable method for a rapid drug efficacy assessment system because of the need for expensive equipment, complicated surgery, and the long time before results can be obtained from analysis by inspection. Locomotor activity has traditionally been used as an indicator of the effects of drugs, genes, and disease models. The Nano-Tag, a new device for analyzing activity after an easy implantation surgery, measures locomotor activity without expensive equipment and the need for inspection for data processing, and the overall cost is much lower than that of a telemetry system. In this study, we compared the data obtained from polysomnography and on locomotor activity in telemetry transmitter-embedded cynomolgus monkeys by implanting the Nano-Tag subcutaneously in the forehead and administering sleep-disorder drugs to confirm if sleep-wake states could be measured using the Nano-Tag. When we compared the changes in awake time per unit time measured using polysomnography and locomotor activity counts per unit time measured using the Nano-Tag, cynomolgus monkeys exhibited a diurnal preference, and the correlation coefficients were positive during the 24-h period. Additionally, the correlation coefficients during the 12-h dark period were positive when the hypersomnia treatment drug modafinil was administered. The correlation coefficients during the 12-h light period were also positive when the insomnia treatment drug triazolam was administered. These results suggest that measuring locomotor activity is an effective tool for identifying sleep-wake states and screening sleepdisorder drugs at low cost and with less burden to animal subjects.
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