People deprived of sleep overnight show an immediate and significant increase in amyloid plaques in the brain, one of the biomarkers of Alzheimer’s diseaseaccording to the results of a study published in the medical journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Researchers from the US National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in the United States subjected 20 healthy people with no history of brain disorders to two nights in the laboratory, one of which was white. The morning after these two nights, the participants underwent brain scans to assess their beta amyloid levels.
Lack of sleep increases the production of amyloid plaques in the brain
The researchers found that the sleep deprivation was associated with a significant increase in amyloid beta levels in the brain, compared to a good night’s sleep.
Additionally, amyloid beta increases were seen in brain regions important for memory and thinking. These included the hippocampus, which is related to the memoryand the thalamus, which is an important center for relaying sensory information to the brain.
Scientists suspect that each time a neuron dies, it contributes to the production of amyloid beta in the brain.
“When people don’t sleep, their neurons die, which can lead to a buildup of amyloid beta,” said study author Ehsan Shokri-Kojori.
“But, it is also possible that sleep promotes the elimination of waste products from the brain, including amyloid beta,” explain the researchers of the study. “In fact, during sleep, neurons shrink in size, creating space between cells that allows debris to be more easily cleared from the brain.”
Further studies are needed to assess the irreversible nature of this formation and whether lack of sleep increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
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