Daytime restriction of feeding prevents illuminated night-induced impairment of metabolism and sleep in diurnal zebra finches

Zebra finches exposed to dim light at night with ad lib feeding gained weight and experienced poorer sleep quality.

• Fat accumulation and weight gain occurred in zebra finches under dim light at night with unrestricted food access.
• Changes in gene expression linked to metabolism indicated enhanced glucose production and impaired fat synthesis in those birds.
• Increased levels of certain molecular markers suggested attempts to mitigate metabolic damage in birds fed during illuminated nights.
• Nocturnal sleep duration and bout lengths were reduced in birds with continuous food access during dim light at night.
• Gene expression related to sleep promotion was lower, while those associated with wakefulness were higher in the birds with unrestricted feeding.

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