Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is frequently associated with acute and chronic disturbances in sleep architecture. However, the extent to which injury severity and biological sex influence post-traumatic sleep patterns remains underexplored in preclinical models. Here, we used a validated, noninvasive...
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| Format: | Article |
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Elsevier
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Neurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451994425000161 |
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| author | Grant S. Mannino Tabitha R.F. Green Sean M. Murphy Michael R. Sierks Mark R. Opp Rachel K. Rowe |
| author_facet | Grant S. Mannino Tabitha R.F. Green Sean M. Murphy Michael R. Sierks Mark R. Opp Rachel K. Rowe |
| author_sort | Grant S. Mannino |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is frequently associated with acute and chronic disturbances in sleep architecture. However, the extent to which injury severity and biological sex influence post-traumatic sleep patterns remains underexplored in preclinical models. Here, we used a validated, noninvasive piezoelectric monitoring system to assess sleep in male and female mice following sham (n = 30), mild (n = 32), or moderate (n = 32) midline fluid percussion injury (mFPI). Physiological parameters were recorded non-invasively to determine sleep for 48 h post-injury. Hierarchical mixed-effects models were used to evaluate effects of injury severity and sex on sleep duration, architecture, and fragmentation. We found that sleep increased during the acute post-injury period regardless of TBI severity, but that sleep fragmentation was selectively elevated after moderate injury. Notably, female mice exhibited greater overall sleep disturbances compared to males, highlighting a sex-dependent vulnerability. These effects varied across the light-dark cycle. This study provides the first detailed characterization of sex- and severity-specific changes in sleep architecture and fragmentation following diffuse TBI using a high-throughput, noninvasive method. Importantly, it reveals that injury severity predicts the extent of sleep fragmentation highlighting a direct link between injury severity and disrupted sleep architecture. These findings contribute to the growing recognition of sleep fragmentation as a relevant biomarker in TBI and establish a framework for future mechanistic and interventional studies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1384239370554b68b4c6dc1f3d67892e |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2451-9944 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Neurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms |
| spelling | doaj-art-1384239370554b68b4c6dc1f3d67892e2025-08-20T02:01:46ZengElsevierNeurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms2451-99442025-05-011810012710.1016/j.nbscr.2025.100127Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentationGrant S. Mannino0Tabitha R.F. Green1Sean M. Murphy2Michael R. Sierks3Mark R. Opp4Rachel K. Rowe5Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USADepartment of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA; University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United KingdomCumberland Biological and Ecological Researchers, Longmont, CO, USAChemical Engineering, The School for Engineering of Matter, Transport and Energy, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA, 85287-6106Department of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USADepartment of Integrative Physiology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA; Corresponding author. Department of Integrative Physiology University of Colorado Boulder, UCB 354 2860 Wilderness Place Boulder, CO, 80301, USA.Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is frequently associated with acute and chronic disturbances in sleep architecture. However, the extent to which injury severity and biological sex influence post-traumatic sleep patterns remains underexplored in preclinical models. Here, we used a validated, noninvasive piezoelectric monitoring system to assess sleep in male and female mice following sham (n = 30), mild (n = 32), or moderate (n = 32) midline fluid percussion injury (mFPI). Physiological parameters were recorded non-invasively to determine sleep for 48 h post-injury. Hierarchical mixed-effects models were used to evaluate effects of injury severity and sex on sleep duration, architecture, and fragmentation. We found that sleep increased during the acute post-injury period regardless of TBI severity, but that sleep fragmentation was selectively elevated after moderate injury. Notably, female mice exhibited greater overall sleep disturbances compared to males, highlighting a sex-dependent vulnerability. These effects varied across the light-dark cycle. This study provides the first detailed characterization of sex- and severity-specific changes in sleep architecture and fragmentation following diffuse TBI using a high-throughput, noninvasive method. Importantly, it reveals that injury severity predicts the extent of sleep fragmentation highlighting a direct link between injury severity and disrupted sleep architecture. These findings contribute to the growing recognition of sleep fragmentation as a relevant biomarker in TBI and establish a framework for future mechanistic and interventional studies.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451994425000161Sleep disturbancesBrain injuryConcussionMaleFemaleSleep fragmentation |
| spellingShingle | Grant S. Mannino Tabitha R.F. Green Sean M. Murphy Michael R. Sierks Mark R. Opp Rachel K. Rowe Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation Neurobiology of Sleep and Circadian Rhythms Sleep disturbances Brain injury Concussion Male Female Sleep fragmentation |
| title | Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation |
| title_full | Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation |
| title_fullStr | Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation |
| title_short | Impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture, duration, and fragmentation |
| title_sort | impacts of traumatic brain injury severity and sex on sleep architecture duration and fragmentation |
| topic | Sleep disturbances Brain injury Concussion Male Female Sleep fragmentation |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2451994425000161 |
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