Neuro-inflammatory Response and Immune–Brain Crosstalk in Sleep Regulation

Sleep and immune response are reciprocally linked. Lack of sleep impairs immune functions, increasing the organism’s susceptibility to infection. The immune activation by microbial exposure triggers an inflammatory response, and based on its magnitude and time course, it modulates sleep. The inflammatory mediators (e.g., cytokines, chemokines) signal the brain to promote the sickness including fatigue and sleepiness. This is an adaptive response of the central nervous system (CNS) that enables organisms to facilitate recovery from infection/injury. In absence of microbial challenges, sleep appears to regulate the inflammatory mediators and maintain inflammatory homeostasis. This chapter gathers available data to explore the mutual interaction of sleep and immunity.