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Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Visualization of Amyloid β Deposits in the Human Brain with Matrix-assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Imaging Mass Spectrometry
Published on: March 7, 2019
Sleep fragmentation correlates with amyloid beta deposition at brain autopsy
Mark A Rudolf1, Yee To Ng2, Andrew P Lieberman1
1Department of Pathology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
Introduction:
Poor sleep is a symptom and candidate risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD). We investigated whether objective and subjective longitudinal sleep measures correlated with AD pathology at brain autopsy.
Methods:
Rush Memory and Aging Project (MAP) participants (n = 798; Meanage at baseline = 81.72) underwent annual evaluation with actigraphy along with sleep questionnaires and cognitive assessment. Brain autopsy provided quantitative neuropathologic data.
Results:
Objective sleep fragmentation was associated with higher amyloid density. This association was only observed among individuals with low AD neuropathologic change or no/mild cognitive impairment. Last-measured sleep fragmentation had a stronger association with amyloid density than did mean sleep fragmentation across the study. Poorer subjective sleep quality was paradoxically linked to lower AD-related neuropathologic burden.
Discussion:
These findings provide histopathologic evidence linking objectively measured sleep fragmentation to cerebral amyloid deposition and suggest that sleep disruption may be most relevant during earlier stages of AD pathogenesis.
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