Latest news with #SIK3
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Born to Sleep Less? Doctors Say This Rare Gene Mutation Might Be Why
Along with getting exercise and eating a nutritious diet, sleeping for 7-9 hours a night is at the top of every doctor's list of habits that will keep you healthy. Experts warn that skimping on sleep can lead to a range of health issues, from high blood pressure to obesity to weakened immunity. However, a new study is challenging these guidelines, suggesting that a rare mutation in the SIK3 gene might allow the brain to function on less sleep than the average person needs. The study, originally published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that genetically engineered mice that carry the SIK3 mutation slept about 31 minutes less per day than mice without the mutation. Researchers also discovered that the mutation was most active in the parts of the brain where nerve cells communicate. This suggests the gene might help the brain "reset" more efficiently without as much isn't the first time scientists have linked genes to needing less sleep. Years ago, the same research team studied a mother and daughter who naturally slept six hours or less each night but still woke up feeling well-rested. They discovered the pair shared a rare genetic mutation in a gene responsible for regulating the body's internal clock. 'Our bodies continue to work when we go to bed," co-author Ying-Hui Fu, a neuroscientist and geneticist at the University of California, San Francisco, told Nature. 'These people, all these functions our bodies are doing while we are sleeping, they can just perform at a higher level than we can.' Aside from the SIK3 gene, the researchers also identified five mutations in four different genes that can contribute to needing less sleep. But according to the researchers, different family lineages possess different mutations. "These findings advance our understanding of the genetic underpinnings of sleep, highlight the broader implications of kinase activity in sleep regulation across species, and provide further support for potential therapeutic strategies to enhance sleep efficiency," researchers said.
The Independent
10-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
The bizarre reason some people are fine on just four hours of sleep a night
Scientists identified a rare gene mutation (N783Y in the SIK3 gene) that allows some individuals to function well on only 4-6 hours of Sleep. This mutation affects a phosphate exchange process crucial to the Sleep -wake cycle, leading to less Sleep and potentially more deep Sleep. Mice with the same mutation slept 30 minutes less than unaltered mice, confirming the gene's role in Sleep duration. This discovery could lead to new therapies for Sleep disorders and improve Sleep quality. The mutation seems to increase deep Sleep in those who have it.
The Independent
09-05-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Are you a super-sleeper? Rare mutation means some people thrive on just 4 hours a night
Scientists have discovered a rare genetic mutation that lets some people thrive with just four hours of daily slumber, an advance that could lead to new therapies to induce better sleep and rest. Doctors recommend at least seven to nine hours of bedtime each night, with sleep deprivation linked to early onset of conditions like Alzheimer 's and heart disease. However, people with this rare mutation tend to feel fully rested after only four to six hours of sleep each night, without showing any of the adverse effects linked to chronic sleep loss. Such people have less need for sleep, as measured using the low-frequency Delta brain waves on EEG scans, and may also feel 'worse' if they sleep more, say researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Until now, four genes have been linked to such a natural short sleep, or NSS, in people. Previous studies have revealed that a phosphate molecule exchange process at the junction of two connecting nerve cells plays a critical role in the sleep-wake cycle. Researchers have now found that a mutation in people with NSS, within the gene salt-induced kinase 3 (SIK3), also plays a key role in human sleep duration. A mutation called N783Y was found to alter the SIK3 protein's structure, hindering its ability to engage in the phosphate molecule transfer process. In this mutation, the asparagine (N) amino acid in the SIK3 protein's 783rd protein building block position is replaced by the molecule tyrosine (Y). When scientists created mice with this N783Y mutation, the mutant mice were found to sleep an average of 30 minutes less each night, compared with unaltered mice. Further analysis confirmed that the mutation caused structural changes affecting the protein's ability to transfer key phosphate molecules to other proteins. The mutation did not seem to affect the levels of proteins in the mice, indicating that the sleep duration changes are linked to altered SIK3 activity and not to protein quantity within the rodents. It also led to a slight increase in EEG delta power, indicating that people with the mutation experience more deep sleep. With the study, scientists have confirmed the critical role played by the SIK3 gene in regulating human sleep duration, indicating it could be a promising target for sleep drugs. They hope to conduct further studies to gain more insight into how some enzymes linked to the process regulate sleep. The research may lead to potential new drug targets to improve sleep, researchers say. 'These findings advance our understanding of the genetic underpinnings of sleep,' scientists wrote, adding that it provides 'further support for potential therapeutic strategies to enhance sleep efficiency'.
