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Seasonal variations in sleep-wake cycle inMicrocebus murinus

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Abstract

Seasonal variations in the sleep-wake cycle of four captiveMicrocebus murinus were studied, using electroencephalography. TheMicrocebus were maintained under artificial light which reproduced the day-night cycle at the latitude of Paris, France (49°).

Microcebus spends from three fourths to two thirds of the 24-hr cycle in sleep phase from September to January, whereas sleep phase constitutes only a half of the daily cycle in summer. The REM-S duration is relatively constant throughout the year, although being notably lengthened in September.

Quiet wakefulness constitutes the major part of the time spent awake during the first part of the annual rest season (October to December). These patterns are similar to those seen during the prehibernation state in hibernating mammals.

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Barre, V., Petter-Rousseaux, A. Seasonal variations in sleep-wake cycle inMicrocebus murinus . Primates 29, 53–64 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02380849

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