title: Benzodiazepines promote the intermediate stage at the expense of paradoxical sleep in the rat.
abstract: The effects of diazepam, a long half-life benzodiazepine, midazolam and triazolam, two with short half-life, on the transitional stage between deep slow wave sleep and paradoxical sleep were studied in Wistar and WAG/Rij rats. This intermediate stage is characterized by the unusual association of cortical spindles and low frequency hippocampal theta rhythm. The main result was extension of the intermediate stage at the expense of paradoxical sleep by diazepam and triazolam by influencing only the duration of the intermediate stage and both the onset and maintenance of paradoxical sleep. Midazolam increased both intermediate stage and paradoxical sleep. Several differences in the qualitative modulation of the stage characteristics and between rat strains were found. In regard to the possible peculiar physiological significance of the intermediate stage, we conclude that benzodiazepines promote a transient pharmacological cerveau isolé-like stage during sleep in rats.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Psychophysiologie, Faculté des Sciences, Université de Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Nice, France.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gandolfo
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Scherschlicht
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gottesmann
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003975:Diazepam / Q000494:pharmacology; D004569:Electroencephalography / Q000187:drug effects; D004827:Epilepsy / Q000503:physiopathology; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000187:drug effects; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D008874:Midazolam / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012894:Sleep Stages / Q000187:drug effects*; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000187:drug effects*; D013045:Species Specificity; D013826:Theta Rhythm / Q000187:drug effects; D014229:Triazolam / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D014229:Triazolam; D003975:Diazepam; D008874:Midazolam