Contributions of post-learning REM and NREM sleep to memory retrieval

It has become clear that sleep after learning has beneficial effects on the later retrieval of newly acquired memories. The neural mechanisms underlying these effects are becoming increasingly clear as well, particularly those of non-REM sleep. However, much is still unknown about the sleep and memory relationship: the sleep state or features of sleep physiology that associate with memory performance often vary by task or experimental design, and the nature of this variability is not entirely clear. This paper describes pertinent features of sleep physiology and provides a detailed review of the scientific literature indicating beneficial effects of post-learning sleep on memory retrieval. This paper additionally introduces a hypothesis which attributes these beneficial effects of post-learning sleep to separable processes of memory reinforcement and memory refinement whereby reinforcement supports one's ability to retrieve a given memory and refinement supports the precision of that memory retrieval in the context of competitive alternatives. It is observed that features of non-REM sleep are involved in a post-learning substantiation of memory representations that benefit memory performance; thus, memory reinforcement is primarily attributed to non-REM sleep. Memory refinement is primarily attributed to REM sleep given evidence of bidirectional synaptic plasticity in REM sleep and findings from studies of selective REM sleep deprivation.