ABSTRACT
In folklore there exists the belief that one of the best remedies for ailments, especially of an infectious nature, is bed rest and the sleep which accompanies it. This chapter reviews the evidence for a role for sleep, in particular slow-wave sleep, in the progression of infection and the subsequent immune response. Feelings of sleepiness and lethargy have long been associated with infectious disease states. The brain and body fluids of sleep-deprived animals including man accrue substances which, when extracted and purified, act as potent somnogens. Since the first demonstration of the sleep-inducing properties of cerebrospinal fluid extracted from sleep-deprived dogs, many putative somnogenic substances or "sleep factors" have been proposed. During the course of an immune response various cytokines are released which target cells both within the immune system and within other systems including nervous system. The veracity of a sleep-immunity relationship may be tested under conditions where the immune-related function of sleep is subtracted from ongoing immune response.
