Apparently sleep Could Increase Number of Brain Cells

Scientists believe they have found a new reason why humans need sleep, because it helps replace the activity of brain cells.
Sleep increases the production of cells called the myelin coating material manufacturer that protects the brain circuitry.

As quoted by the BBC, the findings, currently only proven in mice, may uncover the role of sleep in the improvement and development of the brain and diseases Click MS, said the Wisconsin team of scientists.

Their results are published in the Journal of Neuroscience. Dr Chiara Cirelli and colleagues from the University of Wisconsin found that the rate of production of myelin producing cell, oligodendroctytes, doubled when mice sleep.

This increase is very high when one enters the stage of dreaming or REM sleep (rapid eye movement) and driven by genes. Conversely, genes that play a role in cell death and response to stress is activated when the mouse click is forced to awake.

The reason why humans need sleep has made scientists wonder for hundreds of years. It is clear that we need sleep to rest our mind and in order to function properly, but the biological processes that occur during sleep was discovered recently.