Chronic sleep problems can inflame a number of health problems, from widespread pain to speeding up cancer. Though sleep disturbances have been observed in people with Alzheimer's disease, whether this is a cause or effect has been unknown. Now, researchers say individuals with chronic sleep disruptions could face earlier onset of Alzheimer's.
The researchers, from Temple University in Philadelphia, PA, have published the results of their pre-clinical study in the journal Neurobiology of Aging.
As a start, the team focused on longitudinal studies that showed individuals who reported chronic sleep problems often develop Alzheimer's disease.
Sleep disturbances can be caused by a number of factors, including work, stress, insomnia or other factors. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), insufficient sleep is associated with chronic conditions and diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity and depression.
"The big biological question that we tried to address in this study is whether sleep disturbance is a risk factor to develop Alzheimer's or is it something that manifests with the disease," says lead author Domenico Praticò, professor of pharmacology and microbiology/immunology in the university's School of Medicine.
Sleep-deprived mice exhibited impaired learning and memory
To further investigate, Praticò and his team employed the use of a transgenic Alzheimer's mouse model - mice with DNA from humans - that began developing learning and memory problems within 1 year, which is the equivalent of a human who is around 50 or 60 years old.
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