ABSTRACT
Objective:To investigate the effect of long-term partial sleep deprivation on young mice's learning and memory and explore its probable mechanism Methods:We established the long-term sleep deprivation model in young mice first After 30 days sleep deprivation, the spatial learning and memory of the mice were tested by water maze automatic control device Then the immunohistochemical staining was used to examine nNOS expression in prefrontal cortex and hippocampus of right cerebral hemisphere Light microscopy and image analyzer was used to study the samples Results:Long-term sleep deprivation resulted in learning and memory impairment The mice in study group spend longer time for arriving the end than mice of control group, with much more faults in the routine of maze The immunohistochemical staining of nNOS showed that the expression in prefrontal cortex and hippocampus were greatly decreased following partial sleep deprivation The area of positive and strong positive spots in prefrontal cortex of sleep deprivation group was less than that of control group, but in hippocampus only the area of strong positive spots was significantly different between the two groups Conclusions:Long-term partial sleep deprivation impairs young mice's learning and memory, and the decrease in expression of nNOS in prefrontal cortex and hippocampus maybe a mechanism inducing such impairments