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In order to zero the central molecular mechanism of sleep, researchers at the University of Wisconsin Medical School identified for the first time a single gene mutation that strongly affected Drosophila's sleep time. Normally, the Drosophila gene Shaker creates an ion channel that controls potassium into the cell. Recent studies have shown that potassium channels are also related to the production of human sleep. These findings point to a novel approach to the treatment of sleep disorders, related articles were published in the April 28 issue of Nature. This study provides the possibility of developing a new class of compounds that can affect brain potassium channels. Most people sleep for 7 to 8 hours a night, and if they can't sleep it can seriously affect cognitive performance. However, some people only sleep for 3 to 4 hours but still perform well in cognitive tests. In order to understand this mechanism and the function of sleep, researchers sought to determine the genes behind the phenomenon. Wisconsin's research focuses on factors that control sleep time and sleep time. In a four-year period, the researchers screened 9,000 species of fruit fly and found that one of them slept only one-third of the average fruit fly. Through a series of tests, the researchers found that this short-sleeping fruit fly (named minisleep, mns) performed normally and was not impaired by sleep deprivation. The detection and observation of this fruit fly attracted the researchers' attention to the Shaker gene. The main job of Shaker in Drosophila and its counterparts in humans is to control cell membrane excitability. Dr. Daniel Bushey found that the Shaker gene in this fruit fly contains a single amino acid mutation. Due to this mutation, a functional ion channel cannot be formed on the cell membrane and thus potassium cannot pass through it. When the researchers examined flies carrying the Shaker gene, they found that some flies with other mutations slept normally. But when researchers remove this gene from their genome, they become short sleepers.