Better Sleep May Put Huntington's Disease Sufferers Back On Track

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/07/070718002121.htm

Mice carrying the genetic mutation that causes Huntington's Disease (HD) showed marked improvements in alertness and their ability to learn after they were given drugs that put them to sleep.

According to the Cambridge neuroscientists conducting the research, HD mice have abnormal circadian rhythms; their daily sleeping and waking cycles are disrupted and irregular. Since sleep disruption contributes to problems with perception and learning in healthy people, the team wondered whether the circadian disruption and cognitive disturbances in HD mice were linked.

To test this, drugs were administered to regulate sleep patterns in the mice. The results, published today in the Journal of Neuroscience, show that both drugs caused a noticeable improvement in learning and Alprazolam also improved arousal. The study shows for the first time that treatments aimed at restoring normal sleep-wake activity could slow the cognitive decline that is such a devastating feature of the disease.