Effects of hypoxia and hypercapnia on patterns of sleep-associated apnea in elephant seal pups

This project examined the effects of alterations in respiratory drive on the occurrence of sleep apnea in Northern elephant seal pups (Mirounga angustirostris). Sleep pattern was unaffected by levels of hypoxia (approximately 13%) or hypercapnia (approximately 6%) that doubled respiratory frequency during slow-wave sleep (SWS). During sleep in air, short periods of continuous breathing (mean length = approximately 2.6 min) alternated with periods of apnea (mean length = approximately 6.1 min). Under hypoxic or hypercapnic conditions, the frequency of occurrence of apneas was reduced primarily due to the occurrence of some sleep episodes without periods of apnea. In episodes in which apneas did occur, they began later in the sleep episodes, but their length and the length of the periods of eupnea were not significantly altered. During each period of eupnea, however, the instantaneous respiratory rate and the total number of breaths increased. Breathing during sleep was restricted to SWS, never occurring during rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, regardless of the respired gas mixture. If the levels of hypoxia and hypercapnia were raised further, all episodes of apnea during sleep could be eliminated together with all episodes of REM sleep. One interpretation of the data is that the threshold for altering breathing during eupnea (instantaneous breathing frequency and number of breaths per episode of eupnea) is lower than that for altering the lengths of the periods of apnea and eupnea and that the muscle atonia associated with REM sleep extends to all respiratory muscles.