Aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD), are associated with disabling sleep and cognitive deficits. Specifically, aging and Alzheimer’s disease is associated with reduced quantity and quality of the deepest stage of sleep, called slow-wave-sleep (SWS). Interestingly, SWS has been implicated in hippocampus-dependent memory in mice. More importantly, sleep deprivation, aging, and AD are all associated with deficits in memory. Therefore, I hypothesize that, in aging and AD, the sleep deficits are, at least in part, responsible for memory impairments and increasing the quantity and quality of SWS will reverse these memory deficits. I first developed mouse models of SWS enhancement in aging and AD. Chemogenetic activation of the parafacial zone GABAergic neurons enhances SWS in aged mice as previously described in adult mice. Similarly, in AD mice, SWS enhancement is as effective as in littermate wild-type controls. Then, I used these mouse models to characterize the role of SWS in memory using novel gain-of-sleep experiments. I found that acute SWS enhancement: 1) reduce spatial memory in adult mice and 2) failed to improve spatial memory in aged mice. In a preliminary study, acute SWS enhancement seems to improve contextual memory in AD mice. Collectively, my work provides a novel mouse model of SWS enhancement in aging and AD, offering a pivotal tool to study the role of SWS in physiological functions and neurodegenerative diseases. Furthermore, my results suggest that acute SWS enhancement does not benefit the behavioral manifestation of memory consolidation in adult mice and aged mice.

The abstract on the file is incorrect, use the the one in the system as it summerizes the full text. / This attempted to describe factors contributing to sleep deprivation in the a multidisciplinary intensive care unit in KwaZulu-Natal Province. A quantitative, descriptive research design was adopted and structured interviews were conducted with 34 adult patients. Most factors contributing to these patients' sleep deprivation are basic physiological needs. Much can be done to enhance patients' abilities to sleep if noise (from alarms, monitors, televisions, telephones and footsteps) could be controlled, patients' pain would be managed effectively, doctors would visit the patients regularly, doctors and nurses use lay terms when talking to patients. Visible clocks and windows will help patients to maintain time orientation. Friendly, approachable and respectful nurses who introduce themselves to the patients help' to reduce patients' stress levels and improve their abilities to sleep. / Health Sciences / M.A. (Health Studies)

The abstract on the file is incorrect, use the the one in the system as it summerizes the full text. / This attempted to describe factors contributing to sleep deprivation in the a multidisciplinary intensive care unit in KwaZulu-Natal Province. A quantitative, descriptive research design was adopted and structured interviews were conducted with 34 adult patients. Most factors contributing to these patients' sleep deprivation are basic physiological needs. Much can be done to enhance patients' abilities to sleep if noise (from alarms, monitors, televisions, telephones and footsteps) could be controlled, patients' pain would be managed effectively, doctors would visit the patients regularly, doctors and nurses use lay terms when talking to patients. Visible clocks and windows will help patients to maintain time orientation. Friendly, approachable and respectful nurses who introduce themselves to the patients help' to reduce patients' stress levels and improve their abilities to sleep. / Health Sciences / M.A. (Health Studies)