ADOLESCENT CHRONIC SLEEP RESTRICTION AND ALCOHOL EXPOSURE ALTER ADULT SLEEP AND BEHAVIOUR

Chronic sleep restriction (CSR) and alcohol use are prevalent during adolescence, a critical period of brain maturation. While both factors independently disrupt neurobiological processes and behaviour, their combined impact during adolescence remains uncharacterised. To address this gap, adolescent Marchigian–Sardinian alcohol-preferring rats were exposed to repeated cycles of four-day CSR or control manipulation (S) followed by one day of sleep recovery with access to either water alone (W) or a choice between alcohol (A) and water. The four experimental groups (SW, CSRW, SA, CSRA) were subsequently assessed using the open field (OF), novelty-suppressed feeding (NSF) tests, and polysomnographic recordings (n=6-8/group). Behavioural screening revealed reduced time spent in the centre of the OF in CSRW compared to SW (two-way ANOVA, Sidak p = 0.017). In the NSF test, CSR groups showed a tendency toward reduced latency-to-eat relative to S controls, regardless of alcohol exposure (two-way ANOVA, Sidak p = 0.23). Preliminary polysomnographic results indicate altered baseline sleep–wake architecture and response to acute sleep deprivation (SD) in CSRW and SA relative to SW. Spectral-power analysis suggests blunted rise and dissipation of slow wave activity in the 24h baseline and following SD in SA and CSRW rats relative to SW, an effect that was absent when rats were exposed to both CSR and alcohol drinking. This integrative approach recapitulates key features of adolescent CSR and alcohol consumption, providing a framework to link behavioural alterations to changes in brain-wide activity, in the context of combined CSR and alcohol exposure during adolescence.