A critical role of hypocretin deficiency in pregnancy

作者：Bastianini Stefano; Berteotti Chiara; Lo Martire Viviana; Silvani Alessandro; Zoccoli Giovanna^*

来源：Journal of Sleep Research, 2014, 23(2): 186-188.

DOI：10.1111/jsr.12107

• hypocretins
• mice
• narcolepsy
• orexins
• pregnancy complication

Hypocretin/orexin peptides are known for their role in the control of the wake-sleep cycle and narcolepsy-cataplexy pathophysiology. Recent studies suggested that hypocretin peptides also have a role in pregnancy. We tested this hypothesis by conducting a retrospective analysis on pregnancy complications in two different mouse models of hypocretin deficiency. We recorded 85 pregnancies of mice lacking either hypocretin peptides (knockout) or hypocretin-releasing neurons (transgenic) and their wild-type controls. Pregnancy was associated with unexplained dam death before delivery in 3/15 pregnancies in knockout mice, and in 3/23 pregnancies in transgenic mice. No casualties occurred in wild-type pregnant dams (P<0.007 versus hypocretin-deficient mice as a whole). Hypocretin deficiency did not impact either on litter size or the number of weaned pups per litter. These data provide preliminary evidence of a critical role of hypocretin deficiency in pregnancy.

• 出版日期2014-4