Sleep ability mediates individual differences in the vulnerability to sleep loss: Evidence from a PER3 polymorphism

Our data corroborate a greater detrimental impact of sleep deprivation in PER35/5 compared to PER34/4 carriers. They further suggest that the group with greater attentional performance impairment due to sleep deprivation (PER35/5 carriers) is superior at initiating sleep over the 24-h cycle. This higher sleep ability may mirror a faster sleep pressure build-up between the multiple sleep opportunities and thus a greater flexibility in sleep initiation. Finally, our data show that this higher nap sleep efficiency is positively related to attentional failures under sleep loss conditions and might thus be used as a marker for inter-individual vulnerability to elevated sleep pressure.