Roles of the hypocretin/orexins in the regulation of sleep and wakefulness.
Hypocretin/orexin is produced exclusively in the dorsal and lateral hypothalamus but its projection is widespread within the brain and plays important roles. In this paper, we review the independent discoveries of the hypocretin/orexin peptides, the neuroanatomy of this system, and the link to the sleep disorder narcolepsy that has led to the idea that this system plays a crucial role in the regulation of sleep and wakefulness.
Terao
Akira
A
Laboratory of Biochemistry, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo 060-0818, Japan. terao@vetmed.hokudai.ac.jp
Haruyama
Takashi
T
Kimura
Kazuhiro
K
D000818:Animals; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007031:Hypothalamus / Q000378:metabolism*; D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D009290:Narcolepsy / Q000378:metabolism / Q000662:veterinary*; D009479:Neuropeptides / Q000502:physiology*; D000068797:Orexins; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology*; D014851:Wakefulness / Q000502:physiology*
D047908:Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D009479:Neuropeptides; D000068797:Orexins