Kentucky Researchers Restore 2 Hours of Sleep in Alzheimer’s Models by Targeting Microglia
Updated
Updated · Good News Network · Aug 16
Kentucky Researchers Restore 2 Hours of Sleep in Alzheimer’s Models by Targeting Microglia
1 articles · Updated · Good News Network · Aug 16
Summary
University of Kentucky researchers restored more than two hours of daily sleep in Alzheimer’s-model mice after a 14-day course of pexidartinib depleted 87% of microglia.
The study found microglia—not amyloid plaques themselves or dying neurons—drive sleep loss by triggering an inflammatory cascade that keeps the brain electrically overactive.
At 6 months, sleep disruption appeared as plaques first emerged and did not worsen by 18 months even after plaque burden more than doubled, suggesting an early immune “ceiling effect.”
Normal aging mainly reduced REM sleep, while Alzheimer’s pathology selectively disrupted restorative NREM sleep, the stage tied to repair, memory and toxin clearance.
The team said EEG signatures from that process could become a cheaper screening biomarker, while future work will test drugs such as metformin or stiripentol to calm microglia without removing them.