Researchers from the Sleep Research Centre at the University of Surrey have developed a method for detecting whether or not a driver is sleep deprived based on the results of a blood test.

Led by Professor Derk-Jan Dijk, director of the Surrey Sleep Research Centre at the University of Surrey, the team took blood samples from almost 40 study participants who had skipped one night of sleep and measured changes in the expression levels of thousands of genes.

The team then employed a machine learning algorithm to identify a subset of 68 genes. Using that data, the team was able to determine with over 90 percent accuracy whether the sample came from a sleep-deprived participant or a well-rested one.

Dr. Emma Laing, senior lecturer in bioinformatics at the University of Surrey, said, "We all know that insufficient sleep poses a significant risk to our physical and mental health, particularly over a period of time. However, it is difficult to independently assess how much sleep a person has had, making it difficult for the police to know if drivers were fit to drive, or for employers to know if staff are fit for work."

"Identifying these biomarkers is the first step to developing a test which can accurately calculate how much sleep an individual has had," said Simon Archer, professor of molecular biology of Sleep at the University of Surrey, said. "The very existence of such biomarkers in the blood after only a period of 24-hour wakefulness shows the physiological impact a lack of sleep can have on our body."

"This is a test for acute total sleep loss; the next step is to identify biomarkers for chronic insufficient sleep, which we know to be associated with adverse health outcomes," added Professor Dijk.

The findings are published in the journal Sleep.