Abstract
The process of neurogenesis has been demonstrated to occur throughout life in the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the hippocampal dentate gyrus of several mammals, including humans. The basal rate of adult hippocampal neurogenesis can be altered by lifestyle and environmental factors. In this perspective review, the evidence for sleep as a modulator of adult hippocampal neurogenesis is first summarized. Following this, the impacts of sleep and sleep disturbances on hippocampal-dependent functions, including learning and memory, and depression are critically evaluated. Finally, we postulate that the effects of sleep on hippocampal-dependent functions may possibly be mediated by a change in adult hippocampal neurogenesis. This could provide a route to new treatments for cognitive impairments and psychiatric disorders.
Highlights
Neurogenesis is the process by which new neurons arise from neural stem and progenitor cells, mature, specialize and become integrated and functional within the neuronal network
Neurogenic niches have been recorded in various specific areas of the central nervous system in adult rodents, namely the subventricular zone (SVZ) lining the lateral ventricles, where neuroblasts originate and newborn neurons eventually migrate to the olfactory bulb (Altman, 1969), and the subgranular zone (SGZ) of the hippocampal dentate gyrus where new neurons migrate a short distance through the granule cell layer (Altman and Das, 1965)
There is accumulating evidence supporting a role for sleep as a mediator of neurogenesis and its effects on cognition and mood
Summary
Neurogenesis is the process by which new neurons arise from neural stem and progenitor cells, mature, specialize and become integrated and functional within the neuronal network. Computational modeling of the effects of adult neurogenesis on hippocampal function has generated different theories for the role of newborn neurons These include encoding of temporal information into memories, avoidance of memory interference and cognitive flexibility during learning of new tasks and balancing pattern separation/integration (reviewed in Gonçalves et al, 2016). Sleep- and circadian rhythms have been suggested to be key modulators of plasticity in neural networks (Abel et al, 2013; Frank and Cantera, 2014), resulting in alterations in learning and memory, cognitive performance, as well as emotion regulation (Lo et al, 2012; Krause et al, 2017) In this context, a role for sleep in adult neurogenesis has been investigated in the past decades (Guzman-Marin et al, 2003; Hairston et al, 2005). If this hypothesis is ascertained, it could open new avenues for research and treatments of cognitive disorders and psychiatric diseases
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