SUMMARY

EEG AND BEHAVIOURAL EFFECTS OF DEPRIVATION OF PARADOXICAL SLEEP IN THE CAT

1. Selective deprivation of paradoxical sleep (PS) had been carried out in cats with chronically implanted electrodes for 1-26 days by different methods (swimming pool or electric shocks). Total deprivation of sleep was also carried out for 24-48 h under EEG control.

2. During selective PS deprivation, a need for PS appears, requiring an increasing number of awakenings on successive days in order to prevent it.

3. After PS deprivation longer than 8 days some discrete behavioural disturbances may appear: mostly drowsiness, muscular hypotonia and hypersexuality. There is also a constant tachycardia. Behaviour suggesting hallucinations was not seen.

4. In sleep during recovery, after selective PS deprivation, a selective rebound of PS appears. Its characteristics are emphasized: it is associated with an increase of the phasic phenomena of PS; it is always periodically interrupted by slow sleep and its duration is equal to half the duration of PS deprivation. The return to a normal heart rate closely follows the return to a normal amount of PS. Finally, there is never complete recovery of the debt of PS which is accumulated during deprivation.

5. One cat died on the 5th day of recovery, after a 26 day PS dc privation, after numerous episodes of narcolepsy during which waking was directly followed by PS, without an intermediate episode of slow sleep.

6. Deprivation of both slow and paradoxical sleep is not followed by a PS rebound but on the contrary by an increase of slow sleep.

7. These results are discussed in the light of a neuro-humoral theory of PS.

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