Sleep Characteristics and Cognitive Function in Older Adults Without Dementia: The CABLE Study

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Fu, Yan^{a; 1} | Wang, Zuo-Teng^{b; 1} | Qu, Yi^a | Wang, Xiao-Tong^a | Ma, Ya-Hui^a | Bi, Yan-Lin^c | Dong, Qiang^d | Tan, Lan^{a; b; *} | Yu, Jin-Tai^{d; *}

Affiliations: [a] Department of Neurology, Qingdao Municipal Hospital, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China | [b] College of Medicine and Pharmaceutics, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China | [c] Department of Anesthesiology, Qingdao Municipal Hospital, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China | [d] Department of Neurology and Institute of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: Jin-Tai Yu, MD, PhD, Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, No. 12 Wulumuqi Road, Shanghai, China. Tel.: +86 21 52888160; Fax: +86 21 62483421; E-mail: yu-jintai@163.com. Dr. Lan Tan, Department of Neurology, Qingdao Municipal Hospital, Qingdao University, No. 5 Donghai Middle Road, Qingdao, China.E-mail: dr.tanlan@163.com.

Note: [1] These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract: Background: The associations between sleep characteristics and cognition are complicated. Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathologies have been proven to be associated with sleep characteristics. Objective: We aimed to investigate the associations between sleep characteristics and cognitive function and examine the roles of AD pathologies in modulating the association of sleep duration with cognition. Methods: A total of 974 participants who had measurements of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) amyloid-β (Aβ), phosphorylated tau (P-tau), total tau proteins (T-tau), cognitive function, and sleep characteristics were included from the Chinese Alzheimer’s Biomarker and Lifestyle (CABLE) study. Linear regression analyses were utilized to explore the associations of sleep characteristics with cognition. Non-linear regression analyses were utilized to explore the associations of sleep habits with cognition. Causal mediation analyses were conducted to explore the mediation effects of AD pathologies on cognition. Results: The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) total score was significantly negatively correlated with Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) score (p = 0.0176). Long latency (p = 0.0054) and low efficiency (p = 0.0273) were associated with cognitive impairment. Habitual nap behavior was associated with lower MoCA scores (p = 0.0045). U-shaped associations were observed between sleep habits (bedtime and nocturnal sleep duration) and cognition. A causal mediation analysis indicated that P-tau/Aβ42 mediated the association of sleep duration with cognition. Conclusion: These findings showed sleep characteristics were associated with cognitive functions. Sleep habits (duration, bedtime) had U-shaped associations with cognition. AD core pathologies might partially mediate the influence of sleep duration on cognitive impairments.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, cerebrospinal fluid, cognition, montreal cognitive assessment, sleep

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-215017

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 84, no. 3, pp. 1029-1038, 2021