Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstrasse 2-10, 80804 Munich, Germany.
Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2010 Feb;35(2):297-304. doi: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2009.07.007. Epub 2009 Aug 3.
Ghrelin increases non-REM sleep and decreases REM sleep in young men but does not affect sleep in young women. In both sexes, ghrelin stimulates the activity of the somatotropic and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, as indicated by increased growth hormone (GH) and cortisol plasma levels. These two endocrine axes are crucially involved in sleep regulation. As various endocrine effects are age-dependent, aim was to study ghrelin's effect on sleep and secretion of GH and cortisol in elderly humans. Sleep-EEGs (2300-0700 h) and secretion profiles of GH and cortisol (2000-0700 h) were determined in 10 elderly men (64.0+/-2.2 years) and 10 elderly, postmenopausal women (63.0+/-2.9 years) twice, receiving 50 microg ghrelin or placebo at 2200, 2300, 0000, and 0100 h, in this single-blind, randomized, cross-over study. In men, ghrelin compared to placebo was associated with significantly more stage 2 sleep (placebo: 183.3+/-6.1; ghrelin: 221.0+/-12.2 min), slow wave sleep (placebo: 33.4+/-5.1; ghrelin: 44.3+/-7.7 min) and non-REM sleep (placebo: 272.6+/-12.8; ghrelin: 318.2+/-11.0 min). Stage 1 sleep (placebo: 56.9+/-8.7; ghrelin: 50.9+/-7.6 min) and REM sleep (placebo: 71.9+/-9.1; ghrelin: 52.5+/-5.9 min) were significantly reduced. Furthermore, delta power in men was significantly higher and alpha power and beta power were significantly lower after ghrelin than after placebo injection during the first half of night. In women, no effects on sleep were observed. In both sexes, ghrelin caused comparable increases and secretion patterns of GH and cortisol. In conclusion, ghrelin affects sleep in elderly men but not women resembling findings in young subjects.
生长激素释放肽增加年轻男性的非快速动眼睡眠和减少快速动眼睡眠，但不影响年轻女性的睡眠。在两性中，生长激素释放肽刺激生长激素（GH）和皮质醇的血浆水平增加，表明促性腺激素和下丘脑-垂体-肾上腺（HPA）轴的活性增加。这两个内分泌轴在睡眠调节中至关重要。由于各种内分泌效应随年龄而变化，因此目的是研究生长激素释放肽对老年人睡眠以及 GH 和皮质醇分泌的影响。在这项单盲、随机、交叉研究中，10 名老年男性（64.0+/-2.2 岁）和 10 名老年绝经后女性（63.0+/-2.9 岁）两次接受 50μg 生长激素释放肽或安慰剂，于 2200、2300、0000 和 0100 小时给药。与安慰剂相比，生长激素释放肽与睡眠时相 2 显著增加有关（安慰剂：183.3+/-6.1；生长激素释放肽：221.0+/-12.2 分钟）、慢波睡眠（安慰剂：33.4+/-5.1；生长激素释放肽：44.3+/-7.7 分钟）和非快速动眼睡眠（安慰剂：272.6+/-12.8；生长激素释放肽：318.2+/-11.0 分钟）。睡眠时相 1（安慰剂：56.9+/-8.7；生长激素释放肽：50.9+/-7.6 分钟）和快速动眼睡眠（安慰剂：71.9+/-9.1；生长激素释放肽：52.5+/-5.9 分钟）显著减少。此外，与安慰剂相比，男性在夜间前半段注射生长激素释放肽后，delta 功率显著升高，alpha 功率和 beta 功率显著降低。在女性中，未观察到对睡眠的影响。在两性中，生长激素释放肽引起相似的 GH 和皮质醇增加和分泌模式。总之，生长激素释放肽影响老年男性的睡眠，但不影响女性，类似于年轻受试者的发现。
