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Harrington YA, Parisi JM, Duan D, Rojo-Wissar DM, Holingue C, Spira AP. Sex Hormones, Sleep, and Memory: Interrelationships Across the Adult Female Lifespan. Front Aging Neurosci 2022; 14:800278. [PMID: 35912083 PMCID: PMC9331168 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2022.800278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2021] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
As the population of older adults grows, so will the prevalence of aging-related conditions, including memory impairments and sleep disturbances, both of which are more common among women. Compared to older men, older women are up to twice as likely to experience sleep disturbances and are at a higher risk of cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). These sex differences may be attributed in part to fluctuations in levels of female sex hormones (i.e., estrogen and progesterone) that occur across the adult female lifespan. Though women tend to experience the most significant sleep and memory problems during the peri-menopausal period, changes in memory and sleep have also been observed across the menstrual cycle and during pregnancy. Here, we review current knowledge on the interrelationships among female sex hormones, sleep, and memory across the female lifespan, propose possible mediating and moderating mechanisms linking these variables and describe implications for ADRD risk in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasmin A. Harrington
- Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Jeanine M. Parisi
- Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Daisy Duan
- Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Darlynn M. Rojo-Wissar
- The Initiative on Stress, Trauma, and Resilience (STAR), Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Center for Behavioral and Preventive Medicine, The Miriam Hospital, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, United States
| | - Calliope Holingue
- Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Center for Autism and Related Disorders, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Adam P. Spira
- Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Johns Hopkins Center on Aging and Health, Baltimore, MD, United States
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Carr KA, Hollis-Hansen K, Austin K, Epstein LH. Written or drawn episodic future thinking cues improves delay discounting in adults. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2021; 74. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2021.101727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Zinke K, Lehnert V, Fritsche A, Preissl H, Hallschmid M. Pregnant women do not display impaired memory formation across one night of sleep. J Sleep Res 2020; 30:e13204. [PMID: 32985760 DOI: 10.1111/jsr.13204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2020] [Revised: 09/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Forgetfulness is a common complaint of pregnant women, who also often report impaired nocturnal sleep. Considering sleep's well-known beneficial role in consolidating newly encoded memory content, we hypothesized that pregnant women would display detrimental changes in objective sleep measures and associated memory deficits. We compared the consolidation of declarative as well as procedural memory across sleep in 21 healthy, third-trimester pregnant women versus 20 matched non-pregnant controls. Subjects encoded and were tested on visuospatial and procedural memory tasks before and after, respectively, a night of sleep spent at home. The emergence of gist-based memories was tested with the Deese-Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Sleep was polysomnographically recorded and subjective sleep quality was assessed with questionnaires. Although pregnant in comparison to non-pregnant women reported markedly impaired subjective sleep quality and efficiency, quantitative changes were limited to increases in wakefulness after sleep onset and reductions in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Retention of newly learned memory contents, which is believed to reflect sleep-associated memory consolidation, was comparable between groups, as was the formation of gist-based memories. The findings indicate that subjective deteriorations in sleep quality experienced by pregnant women are not necessarily linked to objective impairments. They raise the possibility that sufficient slow wave sleep towards the end of pregnancy allows for normal sleep-related memory consolidation. Although these results were obtained in a small number of pregnant women in very good health and should be corroborated in larger samples, they challenge the assumption of poor sleep and impaired memory as hallmarks of the "pregnancy brain".
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Zinke
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioural Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Vanessa Lehnert
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioural Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Andreas Fritsche
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany.,Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases, Helmholtz Center Munich at the University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Division of Endocrinology, Diabetology and Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Hubert Preissl
- German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany.,Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases, Helmholtz Center Munich at the University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,Department of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, Interfaculty Centre for Pharmacogenomics and Pharma Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Manfred Hallschmid
- Institute of Medical Psychology and Behavioural Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.,German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), Tübingen, Germany.,Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases, Helmholtz Center Munich at the University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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Babaei F, Mirzababaei M, Nassiri-Asl M. Quercetin in Food: Possible Mechanisms of Its Effect on Memory. J Food Sci 2018; 83:2280-2287. [DOI: 10.1111/1750-3841.14317] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Fatemeh Babaei
- Dept. of Clinical Biochemistry; Qazvin Univ. of Medical Sciences; Qazvin Iran
| | - Mohammadreza Mirzababaei
- Dept. of Clinical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medical Sciences; Tarbiat Modares Univ.; 14115-111 Tehran Iran
| | - Marjan Nassiri-Asl
- Cellular and Molecular Research Center; Qazvin Univ. of Medical Sciences; 341197-5981 Qazvin Iran
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Ouellette SJ, Hampson E. Memory and affective changes during the antepartum: A narrative review and integrative hypothesis. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2018; 41:87-107. [DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2018.1485881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Sarah J. Ouellette
- Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - Elizabeth Hampson
- Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
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Altered task-dependent functional connectivity patterns during subjective recollection experiences of episodic retrieval in postpartum women. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2018; 150:116-135. [PMID: 29544726 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2018.03.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2017] [Revised: 03/06/2018] [Accepted: 03/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Numerous studies have suggested that postpartum women show a decline in cognitive abilities. However, to date, no study has investigated the presence of qualitative alterations in recognition memory processes in postpartum women that may lead to a decline in cognitive ability. To address this issue, we employed the Remember/Know procedure and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Behavioral results demonstrated that compared with the matched control (CTRL) group, the postpartum (PP) group endorsed "Remember" less and "Know" more to old items. A univariate analysis of fMRI data indicated lower neural activity of the subjective recollection network in the PP group than in the CTRL group. We also performed a large-scale functional connectivity multivariate pattern analysis (fcMVPA) using task-dependent time-series to detect differences in functional connectivity patterns and neural interactivity between the PP and CTRL groups. The fcMVPA results revealed that the PP group exhibited altered functional connectivity patterns from which machine learning algorithms could discriminate group membership with 94% accuracy. Collectively, these findings demonstrated that altered subjective recollection processes in the PP group during episodic memory decisions are associated with diminished neural activity and abnormal interactivity across the subjective recollection network. We believe that this is one of the first studies demonstrating qualitative alterations in recognition memory processes in postpartum women.
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Davies SJ, Lum JAG, Skouteris H, Byrne LK, Hayden MJ. Cognitive impairment during pregnancy: a meta‐analysis. Med J Aust 2018; 208:35-40. [DOI: 10.5694/mja17.00131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2017] [Accepted: 07/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
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Osmanovic-Barilar J, Salkovic-Petrisi M. Evaluating the Role of Hormone Therapy in Postmenopausal Women with Alzheimer’s Disease. Drugs Aging 2016; 33:787-808. [DOI: 10.1007/s40266-016-0407-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
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Hampson E, Phillips SD, Duff-Canning SJ, Evans KL, Merrill M, Pinsonneault JK, Sadée W, Soares CN, Steiner M. Working memory in pregnant women: Relation to estrogen and antepartum depression. Horm Behav 2015; 74:218-27. [PMID: 26187710 PMCID: PMC8693635 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.07.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2015] [Revised: 07/06/2015] [Accepted: 07/07/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
This article is part of a Special Issue "Estradiol and cognition". Subjective changes in concentration and memory are commonly reported by women during the second or third trimesters of pregnancy, but the nature of the problem is poorly understood. We hypothesized that these self-reports might reflect difficulties in working memory (WM). It was further hypothesized that antepartum depression (depression arising during pregnancy) may play an etiological role, either on its own or due to secondary changes in endocrine function or sleep. Using WM tasks that emphasized executive control processes mediated by the prefrontal cortex (PFC) we compared pregnant women tested at 34-36 weeks of gestation (n = 28) with age- and education-matched non-pregnant controls (n = 26). All pregnant women were screened for depression. Evidence of a WM disturbance was found, and was evident only among pregnant women showing depressive symptoms. In contrast, pregnant women who were not depressed showed WM performance that equalled, or even significantly exceeded, non-pregnant controls. No significant differences were observed on control tests of other cognitive functions. Multiple regression revealed that serum estradiol concentrations, along with severity of depressive affect but not sleep disruption, significantly predicted variation in the WM scores. In agreement with studies of estradiol and WM in other contexts, higher estradiol was associated with better WM, while higher levels of depressive symptoms predicted poorer WM. We conclude that memory disturbance during gestation might not be as widespread as commonly believed, but can be seen among women experiencing antepartum depression. The high level of WM performance found in healthy, non-depressed, pregnant women is discussed from an adaptationist perspective.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Hampson
- Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada; Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada.
| | - Shauna-Dae Phillips
- Women's Health Concerns Clinic, St. Joseph's Healthcare and Medical Sciences Program, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | | | - Kelly L Evans
- Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - Mia Merrill
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | - Julia K Pinsonneault
- Department of Pharmacology and Program in Pharmacogenomics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Wolfgang Sadée
- Department of Pharmacology and Program in Pharmacogenomics, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Claudio N Soares
- Women's Health Concerns Clinic, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences and Obstetrics & Gynecology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
| | - Meir Steiner
- Women's Health Concerns Clinic, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Neurosciences and Obstetrics & Gynecology, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada
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Lonstein JS, Lévy F, Fleming AS. Common and divergent psychobiological mechanisms underlying maternal behaviors in non-human and human mammals. Horm Behav 2015; 73:156-85. [PMID: 26122301 PMCID: PMC4546863 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2015] [Revised: 06/11/2015] [Accepted: 06/12/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Maternal interactions with young occupy most of the reproductive period for female mammals and are absolutely essential for offspring survival and development. The hormonal, sensory, reward-related, emotional, cognitive and neurobiological regulators of maternal caregiving behaviors have been well studied in numerous subprimate mammalian species, and some of the importance of this body of work is thought to be its relevance for understanding similar controls in humans. We here review many of the important biopsychological influences on maternal behaviors in the two best studied non-human animals, laboratory rats and sheep, and directly examine how the conceptual framework established by some of the major discoveries in these animal "models" do or do not hold for our understanding of human mothering. We also explore some of the limits for extrapolating from non-human animals to humans. We conclude that there are many similarities between non-human and human mothers in the biological and psychological factors influencing their early maternal behavior and that many of the differences are due to species-characteristic features related to the role of hormones, the relative importance of each sensory system, flexibility in what behaviors are exhibited, the presence or absence of language, and the complexity of cortical function influencing caregiving behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph S Lonstein
- Neuroscience Program, 108 Giltner Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA; Department of Psychology, 108 Giltner Hall, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
| | - Frédéric Lévy
- Physiologie de la Reproduction et des Comportements, INRA-CNRS-Université de Tours IFCE, Nouzilly 37380, France.
| | - Alison S Fleming
- Fraser Mustard Institute for Human Development, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Toronto at Mississauga, 3359 Mississauga Road, Mississauga, ON L5L 1C6, Canada.
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Abstract
Although Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a common cause of memory impairment and dementia in the elderly disturbed memory function is a widespread subjective and/or objective symptom in a variety of medical conditions. The early detection and correct distinction of AD from non-AD memory impairment is critically important to detect possibly treatable and reversible underlying causes. In the context of clinical research, it is crucial to correctly distinguish between AD or non-AD memory impairment in order to build homogenous study populations for the assessment of new therapeutic possibilities. The distinction of AD from non-AD memory impairment may be difficult, especially in mildly affected patients, due to an overlap of clinical symptoms and biomarker alterations between AD and certain non-AD conditions. This review aims to describe recent aspects of the differential diagnosis of AD and non-AD related memory impairment and how these may be considered in the presence of memory deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sönke Arlt
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
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Logan DM, Hill KR, Jones R, Holt-Lunstad J, Larson MJ. How do memory and attention change with pregnancy and childbirth? A controlled longitudinal examination of neuropsychological functioning in pregnant and postpartum women. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2014; 36:528-39. [DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2014.912614] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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LeMoyne EL, Curnier D, Ellemberg D. Pregnancy and cognition: Deficits in inhibition are unrelated to changes in fitness. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2014; 36:178-85. [DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2013.875520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
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Anderson MV, Rutherford MD. Cognitive reorganization during pregnancy and the postpartum period: an evolutionary perspective. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY 2012; 10:659-687. [PMID: 23052608 PMCID: PMC10426941 DOI: 10.1177/147470491201000402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2012] [Accepted: 09/02/2012] [Indexed: 06/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Where the non-human animal research investigating reproduction-induced cognitive reorganization has focused on neural plasticity and adaptive advantage in response to the demands associated with pregnancy and parenting, human studies have primarily concentrated on pregnancy-induced memory decline. The current review updates Henry and Rendell's 2007 meta-analysis, and examines cognitive reorganization as the result of reproductive experience from an adaptationist perspective. Investigations of pregnancy-induced cognitive change in human females may benefit by focusing on areas, such as social cognition, where a cognitive advantage would serve a protective function, and by extending the study duration beyond pregnancy into the postpartum period.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marla V Anderson
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience, and Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.
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