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SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

Adolescent sleep molds adult social preferences

Nature Neuroscience volume 25, pages 841–843 (2022)Cite this article

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Sleep disruption is a common but poorly understood feature of neurodevelopmental disorders including autism spectrum disorder. A study by Bian et al. reveals that sleep disruption in adolescent mice leads to long-lasting changes in social novelty preferences. Importantly, these perturbations can be restored through balanced actions in midbrain dopamine systems.

Despite the wide range of diversity in sleep phenomena across species, nearly all animals require adequate sleep. But how much sleep is enough? Humans spend about one-third of their adult life sleeping, and require even more sleep during developmental periods (infants, 12–16 h; children, 9–13 h; teens, 8–10 h; adults, 7–9 h)1. While a night of poor sleep can ruin your day at any age, sleep disturbances in children are linked with neurodevelopmental disorders, including a 50–80% higher prevalence of sleep disruption in those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD)2. Although shorter sleep duration is correlated with more severe social impairments among individuals with ASD3, it is unknown whether sleep problems cause changes in social development. A new study illuminates this link — and may have you wondering how your adolescent slumber has shaped your adult social network.

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Fig. 1: Adolescent sleep shapes adult social preferences and dopamine systems.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

    Jenna A. McHenry

  2. Department of Neurobiology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

    Jenna A. McHenry

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  1. Jenna A. McHenry
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Correspondence to Jenna A. McHenry.

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McHenry, J.A. Adolescent sleep molds adult social preferences. Nat Neurosci 25, 841–843 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-022-01103-8

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