Is there a link between sleep changes and memory in Alzheimer's disease?
Aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are both characterized by memory impairments and sleep changes. We investigated the potential link between these disturbances, focusing on sleep spindles, involved in memory consolidation. Two episodic memory tasks were given to young and old healthy participants, as well as to AD patients. Postlearning sleep was recorded. Sleep spindles were globally reduced in aging and AD. AD patients also exhibited a further decrease in fast spindles. Besides, mean intensity of fast spindles was positively correlated, in AD patients, with immediate recall performance. Our results are the first report of a specific decrease in fast spindles in AD, associated with learning abilities. They also give further hints for a functional differentiation between slow and fast spindles.
Rauchs
Géraldine
G
Inserm-EPHE-University of Caen/Basse-Normandie, Research Unit U923, GIP Cyceron, Caen, France. rauchs@cyceron.fr
Schabus
Manuel
M
Parapatics
Silvia
S
Bertran
Françoise
F
Clochon
Patrice
P
Hot
Pascal
P
Denise
Pierre
P
Desgranges
Béatrice
B
Eustache
Francis
F
Gruber
Georg
G
Anderer
Peter
P
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D011939:Mental Recall / Q000502:physiology; D017286:Polysomnography / Q000379:methods; D012890:Sleep / Q000502:physiology*; D012894:Sleep Stages / Q000502:physiology; D012895:Sleep, REM / Q000502:physiology