Rocking during sleep reduces motor deficits and beta-amyloid levels in an Alzheimer's mouse model

Luyan Zhang; Letizia Santoni; Nam Anh Ngo; Reyila Simayi; Eleonora Ficiará; Luisa de Vivo; Michele Bellesi

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2025.112036

Rocking during sleep reduces motor deficits and beta-amyloid levels in an Alzheimer's mouse model

iScience. 2025 Feb 15;28(3):112036. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2025.112036. eCollection 2025 Mar 21.

Authors

Luyan Zhang^{1

2

3}, Letizia Santoni^{1

2}, Nam Anh Ngo^{1

2}, Reyila Simayi^{2

4}, Eleonora Ficiará^{2

4}, Luisa de Vivo^{2

4}, Michele Bellesi^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ School of Biosciences and Veterinary Medicine, University of Camerino, Camerino, Italy.
² Center for Neuroscience, University of Camerino, Camerino, Italy.
³ Key Laboratory of Cold Chain Food Processing and Safety Control, Zhengzhou University of Light Industry, Zhengzhou, China.
⁴ School of Pharmacy, University of Camerino, Camerino, Italy.

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by cognitive decline, beta-amyloid plaques, and tau tangles. Growing evidence suggests a strong link between sleep disturbances and AD progression, with disrupted sleep exacerbating AD progression through increased beta-amyloid and tau accumulation. This relationship indicates that improving sleep quality could slow disease progression and mitigate its effects on the brain. We investigated whether vestibular stimulation (rocking) could mitigate AD pathology in 3xTg mice (n = 58, males). Starting in early adulthood (p60), mice underwent 12-h daily rocking during the light period for four months. Rocking increased non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep initially, although habituation reduced this effect over time. Despite habituation, rocking slowed motor decline and reduced beta-amyloid levels in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. However, tau levels remained unaffected. In conclusion, our findings highlight the potential of non-pharmacological methods to enhance NREM sleep and modify disease trajectory in AD models.

Keywords: Behavioral neuroscience; Biological sciences; Natural sciences; Neuroscience.