Sleep is an evolutionarily conserved and powerful drive, although its complete functions are still unknown. One possible function of sleep is that it promotes brain development. The amount of sleep is greatest during ages when the brain is rapidly developing, and sleep has been shown to influence critical period plasticity. This supports a role for sleep in brain development and suggests that abnormal sleep in early life may lead to abnormal development. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the most prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder in the United States. It is estimated that insomnia affects 44%-86% of the ASD population, predicting the severity of ASD core symptoms and associated behavioral problems. Sleep problems impact the quality of life of both ASD individuals and their caregivers, thus it is important to understand why they are so prevalent. In this review, we explore the role of sleep in early life as a causal factor in ASD. First, we review fundamental steps in mammalian sleep ontogeny and regulation and how sleep influences brain development. Next, we summarize current knowledge gained from studying sleep in animal models of ASD. Ultimately, our goal is to highlight the importance of understanding the role of sleep in brain development and the use of animal models to provide mechanistic insight into the origin of sleep problems in ASD.

中文翻译：

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睡眠、大脑发育和自闭症谱系障碍：来自动物模型的见解。

睡眠是一种进化上保守且强大的驱动力，尽管其完整功能仍然未知。睡眠的一项可能功能是促进大脑发育。在大脑快速发育的年龄段，睡眠量最大，并且睡眠已被证明会影响关键期的可塑性。这支持了睡眠在大脑发育中的作用，并表明生命早期的睡眠异常可能会导致发育异常。自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）是美国最常见的神经发育障碍。据估计，失眠影响了 44%-86% 的 ASD 人群，这预示着 ASD 核心症状和相关行为问题的严重程度。睡眠问题影响自闭症患者及其护理人员的生活质量，因此了解睡眠问题为何如此普遍非常重要。在这篇综述中，我们探讨了早年睡眠作为自闭症谱系障碍 (ASD) 致病因素的作用。首先，我们回顾哺乳动物睡眠个体发育和调节的基本步骤以及睡眠如何影响大脑发育。接下来，我们总结了从自闭症动物模型睡眠研究中获得的最新知识。最终，我们的目标是强调了解睡眠在大脑发育中的作用的重要性，以及使用动物模型来提供自闭症谱系障碍睡眠问题起源的机制见解。