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<p>Sleep is an ancient biological process that is evolutionarily conserved across the animal kingdom; nevertheless, despite decades of study, its ontogenic and phylogenetic function has not been elucidated. While for quite some time, sleep has been studied from a genetics perspective, the relatively new fields of comparative genomics and phylogenomics remain almost completely unexploited as analytical tools. This review aimed to examine how comparative genomics and phylogenomics could be used to infer sleep control mechanisms and disorders. Genomic research reveals that essential circadian clock genes, including CLOCK, BMAL1, PER, and CRY, show high preservation throughout all metazoan species. This is&#xa0;because these genes control the sleep–wake regulation system. Detailed phylogenomic examinations could establish how these putative genes evolved through intricate convergent and divergent evolutionary processes (such as repeated duplications, mutations, horizontal gene transfers). Such an analysis could provide further insight into other sleep-related processes. Phylogenomic analysis could address fundamental questions concerning, e.g. species-specific sleep patterns and various susceptibility risks related to insomnia and narcolepsy, as well as the basis of irregular circadian rhythms. The hypocretin (orexin) system and other neurotransmitter pathways regulate sleep homeostasis, whilst the breakdown of homeostasis results in conditions such as narcolepsy. There are close linkages between quality of sleep and overall health. Scientific data show that precursor processes of sleep disorders&#xa0;share the same genetic pathways that are involved in the onset of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), thus linking sleep quality to brain wellness. Progress in understanding these processes from a genetics perspective has been hindered by the difficulty of carrying out basic experiments and the underutilization of available taxonomic data. Progress in sleep genetics will depend on combining multi-omics methodologies with functional experiments whilst increasing the number of species studied. This review demonstrates how phylogenomics can elucidate the fundamental evolutionary origins of sleep processes, thus permitting inferences related to sleep’s basic function, and ultimately to guiding therapeutic interventions.</p>

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What Function Does Sleep Serve? Inferring the Basic Elements of Sleep Using Comparative Genomics and Phylogenomics

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年6月10日

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  • Konda Mani Saravanan,
  • Seithikurippu R. Pandi-Perumal,
  • David Warren Spence,
  • Saravana Babu Chidambaram

摘要

Sleep is an ancient biological process that is evolutionarily conserved across the animal kingdom; nevertheless, despite decades of study, its ontogenic and phylogenetic function has not been elucidated. While for quite some time, sleep has been studied from a genetics perspective, the relatively new fields of comparative genomics and phylogenomics remain almost completely unexploited as analytical tools. This review aimed to examine how comparative genomics and phylogenomics could be used to infer sleep control mechanisms and disorders. Genomic research reveals that essential circadian clock genes, including CLOCK, BMAL1, PER, and CRY, show high preservation throughout all metazoan species. This is because these genes control the sleep–wake regulation system. Detailed phylogenomic examinations could establish how these putative genes evolved through intricate convergent and divergent evolutionary processes (such as repeated duplications, mutations, horizontal gene transfers). Such an analysis could provide further insight into other sleep-related processes. Phylogenomic analysis could address fundamental questions concerning, e.g. species-specific sleep patterns and various susceptibility risks related to insomnia and narcolepsy, as well as the basis of irregular circadian rhythms. The hypocretin (orexin) system and other neurotransmitter pathways regulate sleep homeostasis, whilst the breakdown of homeostasis results in conditions such as narcolepsy. There are close linkages between quality of sleep and overall health. Scientific data show that precursor processes of sleep disorders share the same genetic pathways that are involved in the onset of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD), thus linking sleep quality to brain wellness. Progress in understanding these processes from a genetics perspective has been hindered by the difficulty of carrying out basic experiments and the underutilization of available taxonomic data. Progress in sleep genetics will depend on combining multi-omics methodologies with functional experiments whilst increasing the number of species studied. This review demonstrates how phylogenomics can elucidate the fundamental evolutionary origins of sleep processes, thus permitting inferences related to sleep’s basic function, and ultimately to guiding therapeutic interventions.