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Associations between objective sleep metrics and brain structure in cognitively unimpaired adults: interactions with sex and Alzheimer's biomarkers
Stankeviciute L, Tort-Colet N, Fernández-Arcos A, Sánchez-Benavides G, Minguillón C, Fauria K, Holst SC, Garcés P et al.. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 2025-06-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Introduction Sleep disturbances are prevalent in Alzheimer's disease (AD), probably emerging during its preclinical stage. Poor subjective sleep quality is linked to reduced brain volume and cortical thickness (CTh), but associations with objective sleep measures, particularly regarding sex and AD pathology, remain unclear. Methods We characterized 171 cognitively unimpaired adults from the ALzheimer and FAmilies (ALFA) Sleep study using actigraphy, MRI, amyloid beta 42/40, and phosphorylated tau at threonine 181 in cerebrospinal fluid.
Key findings
- Poor subjective sleep quality is linked to reduced brain volume and cortical thickness (CTh), but associations with objective sleep measures, particularly regarding sex and AD pathology, remain unclear.
- Methods We characterized 171 cognitively unimpaired adults from the ALzheimer and FAmilies (ALFA) Sleep study using actigraphy, MRI, amyloid beta 42/40, and phosphorylated tau at threonine 181 in cerebrospinal fluid.
- Results Lower sleep efficiency, higher wake after sleep onset (WASO), and sleep fragmentation were associated with lower CTh in the medial temporal lobe and other regions linked with AD and sleep disruption, even after adjusting for AD biomarkers.
- Sex and AD biomarkers modified these associations, with longer WASO showing a stronger correlation with lower CTh in females.
Why it matters
This study examined associations between objective sleep measures and brain structure in cognitively unimpaired adults, and how these relate to sex and Alzheimer's biomarkers. It is an observational study and does not test whether improving sleep prevents Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 46/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record, so that was left out: it earned 44 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 46 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | Alzheimer s & Dementia: journal h-index 228 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2025 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 2 / 7 | Cited 12 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 4.0 citations a year over 3 year(s) since 2025 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 12.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 12 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University College London: institution h-index 2,029 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 19 institution(s) in 5 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 40566790) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 44 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 44 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 46 out of 100. |
| Total | 46 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Stankeviciute, L., Tort-Colet, N., Fernández-Arcos, A., Sánchez-Benavides, G., Minguillón, C., Fauria, K., et al. (2025). Associations between objective sleep metrics and brain structure in cognitively unimpaired adults: interactions with sex and Alzheimer's biomarkers. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70353
Vancouver
Stankeviciute L, Tort-Colet N, Fernández-Arcos A, Sánchez-Benavides G, Minguillón C, Fauria K, et al. Associations between objective sleep metrics and brain structure in cognitively unimpaired adults: interactions with sex and Alzheimer's biomarkers. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association. 2025. doi:10.1002/alz.70353. PMID: 40566790.
BibTeX
@article{stankeviciute2025-40566790,
author = {Stankeviciute, L. and Tort-Colet, N. and Fernández-Arcos, A. and Sánchez-Benavides, G. and Minguillón, C. and Fauria, K. and Holst, S. C. and Garcés, P. and others},
title = {{Associations between objective sleep metrics and brain structure in cognitively unimpaired adults: interactions with sex and Alzheimer's biomarkers}},
journal = {Alzheimer's \& dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1002/alz.70353},
pmid = {40566790},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70353}
}
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