Scientists dig into how certain brain cells shape sleep

In research in mice published this morning in Nature Communications, scientists say they’ve pinpointed a group of cells in the brain that play a role in healthy sleep. Years ago, Dr. Clifford Saper and his colleagues discovered nerve cells nestled in a section of the hypothalamus called the ventrolateral preoptic nucleus, or VLPO. In the new study, they activated those cells — with both light and chemical tools — in genetically engineered mice. Activating them sparked sleep and led body temperature to drop, while damaging them drove insomnia. Now, Saper and his colleagues are digging more into what’s behind that tie between sleep and body temperature.