Modeling the temporal architecture of rat sleep-wake behavior

The fine architecture of sleep-wake behavior shows a distinct dynamic structure with distributions of rat sleep and wake bout durations displaying qualitatively different profiles. Wake bout durations follow a power-law relation whereas sleep bout durations are exponentially distributed. We show that a physiologically-based sleep-wake regulatory network model with an underlying deterministic structure governing neuronal interactions can generate realistic rat sleep-wake behavior as assessed by both standard summary statistics and survival analysis of bout distributions. Obtaining appropriate bout duration distributions depended on stochastic elements included in the model, the existence of multiple mechanisms for state transitions, and specific relationships among time constants governing state maintenance. This model provides a novel framework for exploring the disruptions of sleep-wake architecture associated with pharmacological, genetic, and disease states.