8/12/2023 0 Comments Science daily biologyHowever, the team discovered for the first time, in any animal, that the flow diminished dramatically during REM sleep. Like in humans, the flow of cerebral spinal fluid through ventricles increases during non-REM sleep in pigeons. This hypothesis is supported by the fact that the birds' pupils contract rapidly during REM sleep, like they do during courtship or aggressive behaviors while awake, as recently demonstrated by Gianina Ungurean and colleagues. "This suggests that if birds experience something similar to our human dreams, pigeons' dreams might include emotions as well," says Gianina Ungurean from the Avian Sleep Group at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence. "Based on these observations, we think that birds, just like humans, dream during REM sleep, and might be experiencing flight in their dreams," adds Mehdi Behroozi.Īdditionally, the scientists noticed activation of a particular brain area known as the amygdala during these phases. The team also noticed activity in the areas that process signals from the body, especially from the wings. "During REM sleep, we observed strong activity in brain regions responsible for visual processing, including in those areas that analyze the movement of a pigeon's surroundings during flight," says Mehdi Behroozi. Simultaneously, the fMRI recordings provided information about brain activation and the flow of cerebral spinal fluid in the ventricles. "We were able to observe whether one or both eyes were open or closed, and to track eye movements and changes in pupil size through the pigeons' transparent eyelids during sleep," explains Mehdi Behroozi from the Bochum team. The video recordings shed light on the sleep phases in the birds. To find out what exactly happens when birds sleep, the researchers used infrared video cameras and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to observe and record the sleeping and wakeful states of 15 pigeons specially trained to sleep under these experimental conditions. "Yet the sleep patterns in birds are remarkably similar to those in mammals, including both REM and non-REM phases." "The last common evolutionary ancestor of birds and mammals dates back about 315 million years, to the early days of land vertebrates," says Professor Onur Güntürkün, head of the Biopsychology Department at Ruhr University Bochum. ![]() The question of whether similar processes also take place in birds has remained unresolved until now. ![]() ![]() It does not store any personal data.What happens in a pigeon's brain during sleep? The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". ![]() These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Center for Humanities & History of Modern Biology.Business Development & Technology Transfer.Office of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion.How one family secured the future of a laboratory.
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