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Sleep deprivation during pregnancy is an emerging concern, as it can adversely affect the development of the offspring brain. This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of deprivation of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep during the third term of pregnancy on the sleep-wake profiles of neonates in the Wistar rat model. Sleep-wake patterns were assessed through electrophysiological measures and behavioural observations during postnatal days 1-21 on pups born to REM sleep-deprived dams and control rats. Pups of REM sleep-deprived dams had active sleep that was not only markedly higher in percentage during all the days studied, but also had reduced latency during later postnatal days 15-21. Quiet sleep and wake periods were lower. These factors, along with less frequent but longer sleep-wake cycles, indicated maturational delay in the sleep-wake neural networks. The disruption of time-bound growth of sleep-wake neural networks was substantiated further by the decreased slope of survival plots in the sleep bouts. Examination of altered sleep-wake patterns during early development may provide crucial information concerning deranged neural development in the offspring. This is the first report, to our knowledge, to show that maternal sleep deprivation during pregnancy can delay and impair the development of sleep-wake profile in the offspring.

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There is a growing realization that proper sleep during pregnancy is essential for the health of the mother and the offspring. However, there are no reports on the effects of maternal sleep restriction on the sleep-wake profiles of newborns. So, this study was conducted to evaluate the effects of sleep restriction during the third term of pregnancy on the sleep-wake profiles of neonates born to them. The female pregnant Wistar rats were sleep restricted for 5 h/day on gestational days 15-20 by gentle handling. Sleep-wake profiles of the pups born to them and to the control rats were recorded on postnatal days 1-21. Pups of sleep restricted dams had higher active sleep (AS) and lower quiet sleep (QS) as well as wakefulness. Higher ratio of AS to QS, longer duration of sleep cycles, lesser bout frequency and reduced EEG delta power were also observed in these pups, all of which indicated brain immaturity. All these signs of delayed maturation, usually found in premature babies, were observed in the pups of sleep restricted mothers, who had longer gestation period. This report not only shows the importance of sleep during pregnancy, but it also suggests that neonatal sleep monitoring can be used as a tool for early assessment of retarded brain development.

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