Strain differences in the somnogenic effects of interferon inducers in mice.
Increased slow-wave sleep accompanies influenza infection in C57BL/6 mice but not BALB/c mice. These strains of mice possess different alleles of the genetic lucus If-1, which codes for high (If-1h; C57BL/6) and low (If-1(1); BALB/c) production of interferon (IFN), a putative sleep-inducing cytokine. To evaluate the contribution of the If-1 gene to differences in murine sleep propensity, sleep patterns were evaluated in mice treated with the IFN inducers polyinosinic:polycytidilic acid (pIC) or Newcastle disease virus (NDV), with influenza virus, or with murine interferon (IFN-alpha) or IFN-alpha/beta. As compared with baseline values, C57BL/6 mice exhibited increased slow-wave sleep after all three challenges, but BALB/c mice did not. Congenic B6.C-H28c mice, which bear the BALB/c allele for low IFN production on the C57BL/6 genetic background, showed enhanced slow-wave sleep after influenza infection but not after NDV. Exogenous IFN did not enhance slow-wave sleep in either C57BL/6 or BALB/c mice. These data suggest that the If-1 allele may influence the somnogenic responsiveness of mice under some conditions but that additional mechanisms may contribute to sleep enhancement during infectious disease.
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Department of Infectious Diseases, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN, USA.
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004576:Electromyography; D007369:Interferon Inducers / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D009522:Newcastle disease virus / Q000502:physiology*; D009976:Orthomyxoviridae Infections / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D011070:Poly I-C / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012890:Sleep / Q000187:drug effects*; D013045:Species Specificity
D007369:Interferon Inducers; D011070:Poly I-C