Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Butlerova St. 5A, 117485, Moscow, Russia; ITMO University, Kronverksky Pr. 49, 197101, Saint Petersburg, Russia.
Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Butlerova St. 5A, 117485, Moscow, Russia; Centre for Cognition and Decision Making, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Myasnickaya St. 20, 101000, Moscow, Russia.
Sleep Med. 2018 Aug;48:117-126. doi: 10.1016/j.sleep.2018.04.012. Epub 2018 May 12.
Levels of steroid hormones such as androgens and cortisol exhibit circadian variation, and their fluctuations are related to the sleep-wake cycle. Currently, the functional role of different stages of sleep in steroid hormone secretion remains unclear. The present study aims to explore the effect of slow-wave sleep (SWS) suppression on morning levels of cortisol and androgens.
Twelve healthy male volunteers participated in two experimental sessions: a session with selective SWS suppression during night sleep and a session with regular night sleep (control). SWS suppression was achieved by stimulation using an acoustic tone. Salivary samples were collected in the morning immediately after awakening and again 40 min later. The samples were analysed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry for testosterone, androstenedione (Ad), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), 17α-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OHP), and cortisol.
SWS suppression reduced overall SWS duration by 54.2% without significant changes in total sleep time and sleep efficiency. In the session with selective SWS suppression, the average level of morning testosterone was lower than in the control session (p = 0.017). Likewise, 17-OHP was lower in the SWS suppression condition (p = 0.011) whereas the ratio of DHEA/Ad was higher (p = 0.025). There were no significant differences between sessions in cortisol, Ad, or DHEA concentrations.
The effect of selective SWS suppression on morning levels of testosterone and 17-OHP points to the importance of SWS for the synthesis and secretion of androgens. These results suggest that chronic sleep problems, which lead to reduced SWS, increase the risk for the development of androgen deficiency in the long term.
类固醇激素（如雄激素和皮质醇）的水平呈现昼夜节律变化，其波动与睡眠-觉醒周期有关。目前，不同睡眠阶段对类固醇激素分泌的功能作用仍不清楚。本研究旨在探讨慢波睡眠（SWS）抑制对晨皮质醇和雄激素水平的影响。
12 名健康男性志愿者参与了两项实验：一项是夜间睡眠时选择性 SWS 抑制的实验，另一项是常规夜间睡眠的实验（对照组）。SWS 抑制通过声刺激实现。在清晨醒来后立即和 40 分钟后采集唾液样本。通过液相色谱-串联质谱法分析睾酮、雄烯二酮（Ad）、脱氢表雄酮（DHEA）、17α-羟孕酮（17-OHP）和皮质醇。
SWS 抑制使总 SWS 时间减少了 54.2%，而总睡眠时间和睡眠效率没有明显变化。在选择性 SWS 抑制的实验中，早晨睾酮的平均水平低于对照组（p=0.017）。同样，在 SWS 抑制条件下 17-OHP 水平较低（p=0.011），而 DHEA/Ad 比值较高（p=0.025）。在两个实验中皮质醇、Ad 或 DHEA 浓度没有显著差异。
选择性 SWS 抑制对早晨睾酮和 17-OHP 水平的影响表明 SWS 对雄激素的合成和分泌很重要。这些结果表明，慢性睡眠问题导致 SWS 减少，长期来看会增加雄激素缺乏的风险。
