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The brain summons deep sleep for healing from life-threatening injury

A heart attack unleashes immune cells that stimulate sleep neurons, leading to restorative slumber.

Immune cells rush to the brain and promote deep sleep after a heart attack, according to a new study 1 involving both mice and humans. The findings, published today in Nature, could help to guide care for people after a heart attack, says co-author Cameron McAlpine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, who studies immune function in the cardiovascular and nervous systems. Those who reported poor sleep in the weeks following such an episode had a higher risk of developing heart attacks and other serious cardiovascular problems over the next two years than did those who were good sleepers.

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