Sleep Power Spectral Density and Spindles in PTSD and Their Relationship to Symptom Severity

Sleep disturbances are common in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), although which sleep microarchitectural characteristics reliably classify those with and without PTSD remains equivocal. Here, we investigated sleep microarchitectural differences (i.e., spectral power, spindle activity) in trauma-exposed individuals that met (n = 45) or did not meet (n = 52) criteria for PTSD and how these differences relate to post-traumatic and related psychopathological symptoms. Using ecologically-relevant home sleep polysomnography recordings, we show that individuals with PTSD exhibit decreased beta spectral power during NREM sleep and increased fast sleep spindle peak frequencies. Contrary to prior reports, spectral power in the beta frequency range (20.31-29.88 Hz) was associated with reduced PTSD symptoms, reduced depression, anxiety and stress and greater subjective ability to regulate emotions. Increased fast frequency spindle activity was not associated with individual differences in psychopathology. Our findings may suggest an adaptive role for beta power during sleep in individuals exposed to a trauma, potentially conferring resilience. Further, we add to a growing body of evidence that spindle activity may be an important biomarker for studying PTSD pathophysiology.

Associations of sleep measures with neural activations accompanying fear conditioning and extinction learning and memory in trauma-exposed individuals

STUDY OBJECTIVES

Sleep disturbances increase risk of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Sleep effects on extinction may contribute to such risk. Neural activations to fear extinction were examined in trauma-exposed participants and associated with sleep variables.

METHODS

Individuals trauma-exposed within the past 2 years (N=126, 63 PTSD) completed 2 weeks actigraphy and sleep diaries, 3 nights ambulatory polysomnography and a 2-day fMRI protocol with Fear-Conditioning, Extinction-Learning and, 24h later, Extinction-Recall phases. Activations within the anterior cerebrum and regions of interest (ROI) were examined within the total, PTSD-diagnosed and trauma-exposed control (TEC) groups. Sleep variables were used to predict activations within groups and among total participants. Family wise error was controlled at p<0.05 using nonparametric analysis with 5000 permutations.

RESULTS

Initially, Fear Conditioning activated broad subcortical and cortical anterior-cerebral regions. Within-group analyses showed: (1) by end of Fear Conditioning activations decreased in TEC but not PTSD; (2) across Extinction Learning, TEC activated medial prefrontal areas associated with emotion regulation whereas PTSD did not; (3) beginning Extinction Recall, PTSD activated this emotion-regulatory region whereas TEC did not. However, the only between-group contrast reaching significance was greater activation of a hippocampal ROI in TEC at Extinction Recall. A greater number of sleep variables were associated with cortical activations in separate groups versus the entire sample and in PTSD versus TEC.

CONCLUSIONS

PTSD non-significantly delayed extinction learning relative to TEC possibly increasing vulnerability to pathological anxiety. The influence of sleep integrity on brain responses to threat and extinction may be greater in more symptomatic individuals.

Pilot Study on Dose-Dependent Effects of Transcranial Photobiomodulation on Brain Electrical Oscillations: A Potential Therapeutic Target in Alzheimer's Disease

BACKGROUND

Transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM) has recently emerged as a potential cognitive enhancement technique and clinical treatment for various neuropsychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders by delivering invisible near-infrared light to the scalp and increasing energy metabolism in the brain.

OBJECTIVE

We assessed whether transcranial photobiomodulation with near-infrared light modulates cerebral electrical activity through electroencephalogram (EEG) and cerebral blood flow (CBF).

METHODS

We conducted a single-blind, sham-controlled pilot study to test the effect of continuous (c-tPBM), pulse (p-tPBM), and sham (s-tPBM) transcranial photobiomodulation on EEG oscillations and CBF using diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) in a sample of ten healthy subjects [6F/4 M; mean age 28.6±12.9 years]. c-tPBM near-infrared radiation (NIR) (830 nm; 54.8 mW/cm2; 65.8 J/cm2; 2.3 kJ) and p-tPBM (830 nm; 10 Hz; 54.8 mW/cm2; 33%; 21.7 J/cm2; 0.8 kJ) were delivered concurrently to the frontal areas by four LED clusters. EEG and DCS recordings were performed weekly before, during, and after each tPBM session.

RESULTS

c-tPBM significantly boosted gamma (t = 3.02, df = 7, p <  0.02) and beta (t = 2.91, df = 7, p <  0.03) EEG spectral powers in eyes-open recordings and gamma power (t = 3.61, df = 6, p <  0.015) in eyes-closed recordings, with a widespread increase over frontal-central scalp regions. There was no significant effect of tPBM on CBF compared to sham.

CONCLUSION

Our data suggest a dose-dependent effect of tPBM with NIR on cerebral gamma and beta neuronal activity. Altogether, our findings support the neuromodulatory effect of transcranial NIR.

Fear extinction memory is negatively associated with REM sleep in insomnia disorder

STUDY OBJECTIVES

Formation and maintenance of fear-extinction memories are disrupted in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety disorders. Sleep contributes to emotional memory consolidation and emotion regulation. Insomnia disorder (ID) is characterized by persistent sleep disturbance as well as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep abnormalities and often precedes or develops in parallel with PTSD and anxiety disorders. Here, we explore the impact of chronic poor sleep and sleep immediately following fear conditioning and extinction learning on preservation of extinction memories.

METHODS

Twenty-four ID age- and sex-matched to 24 healthy, good sleeper controls (GS) completed up to 2 weeks of habitual sleep monitoring with daily sleep-wake diaries and actigraphy, and then participated in a two-session fear conditioning, extinction learning and extinction recall procedure. Fear Conditioning and Extinction Learning occurred during session 1, followed by Extinction Recall approximately 24 hours later. Skin-conductance responses (SCR) and shock expectancies were recorded throughout all experimental phases to evaluate associative learning and memory. Overnight sleep between sessions 1 and 2 was recorded using ambulatory polysomnography.

RESULTS

ID showed greater physiological reactivity during Fear Conditioning. REM sleep physiology was associated with poorer extinction memory in ID but better extinction memory in GS.

CONCLUSION

REM sleep physiology may differentially support emotional memory retention and expression in ID and GS. In the former, REM may enhance retention of fear memories, while in the later, REM may enhance the expression of extinction memories.

Delayed fear extinction in individuals with insomnia disorder

Study Objectives

Insomnia increases the risk for anxiety disorders that are also associated with fear-extinction deficits. We compared activation of fear and extinction networks between insomnia disorder (ID) without comorbidity and good sleepers (GS).

Methods

Twenty-three ID participants age- and sex-matched to 23 GS participants completed 14 days of actigraphy and diaries, three nights of ambulatory polysomnography and a 2-day fear conditioning and extinction paradigm. Fear conditioning and extinction learning occurred on the first day, followed 24 hours later by extinction recall. Blood-oxygen-level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signal and skin conductance responses (SCR) were recorded. Nineteen participants per group produced usable fMRI data. Beta weights from areas where activation differed between groups were regressed against sleep and psychophysiological measures. SCR was compared between groups at various stages of the paradigm.

Results

During fear conditioning, both ID (N = 19) and GS (N = 19) activated fear-related structures. Across extinction learning, ID (N = 19) demonstrated little change, whereas GS (N = 16) activated both fear and extinction-related areas, including the hippocampus, insula, dorsal anterior cingulate (dACC), and ventromedial prefrontal (vmPFC) cortices. During extinction recall, while GS (N = 17) demonstrated limited activation, ID (N = 16) activated regions similar to those previously activated in GS (vmPFC, dACC, insula). Sleep quality was predictive of activations seen at various stages of the paradigm. SCR data suggested ID were more physiologically reactive than GS.

Conclusions

Across extinction learning, GS but not ID activated both fear and extinction-related networks. At extinction recall, ID engaged similar regions whereas GS no longer did so. Individuals with ID may show a delayed acquisition of fear extinction memories.