Quality of sleep predicts increased frontoparietal network connectivity in patients with mild cognitive impairment

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Cognitive Science
• Sleep Medicine

Background:

• Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) involves neurodegeneration impacting higher cognitive functions.
• Sleep quality is increasingly recognized as a factor influencing brain health and cognitive function.
• Neural network reorganization may be a compensatory mechanism in MCI.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between sleep quality and neural network functional connectivity in MCI.
• To explore whether sleep quality influences compensatory mechanisms in MCI.
• To examine the association between functional connectivity and cognitive performance in MCI.

Main Methods:

• Resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used in 38 MCI patients and 38 controls.
• Independent component analysis (ICA) was applied to reconstruct the default mode network and frontoparietal network (FPN).
• MCI patients were stratified into high and low sleep quality groups based on a self-reported questionnaire.

Main Results:

• High sleep quality in MCI was associated with increased frontoparietal network (FPN) connectivity.
• MCI patients with high sleep quality showed restored inter-network connectivity, similar to controls.
• Disrupted inter-network connectivity was observed in MCI patients with low sleep quality.
• FPN connectivity correlated positively with language scores in MCI patients.

Conclusions:

• Sleep quality appears to play a significant role in modulating brain network connectivity in MCI.
• Enhanced FPN connectivity associated with good sleep may represent a compensatory mechanism against neurodegeneration in MCI.
• These findings highlight sleep quality as a potential therapeutic target for managing MCI.