“Since antiquity cannabinoids have been used as a treatment for insomnia, and the first reports in western medical literature regarding the therapeutic utility and physiological effects of cannabis preparations note their hypnogenic properties.
The hypnogenic properties of cannabis have been recognized for centuries, but endogenous cannabinoid (endocannabinoid) regulation of vigilance states is poorly characterized.
We report findings from a series of experiments in mice measuring sleep with polysomnography after various systemic pharmacological manipulations of the endocannabinoid system.
Our findings demonstrate that eCB signaling is necessary and sufficient for the control of sleep stability, but this neurotransmitter system is not necessary for sleep homeostasis.