Ricerc@Sapienza

Several findings underlined that the electrophysiological (EEG) background of the last segment of sleep before awakenings may predict the presence/absence of dream recall (DR) in young subjects. However, little is known about the EEG correlates of DR in elderly people. Only an investigation found differences between recall and non-recall conditions during NREM sleep EEG in older adults, while—surprisingly—no EEG predictor of DR was found for what concerns REMsleep.

Dream experience (DE) represents a fascinating condition linked to emotional processes and the human inner world. Although the overlap between REM sleep and dreaming has been overcome, several studies point out that emotional and perceptually vivid contents are more frequent when reported upon awakenings from this sleep stage. Actually, it is well-known that REM sleep plays a pivotal role in the processing of salient and emotional waking-life experiences, strongly contributing to the emotional memory consolidation.

Background: Driving performance is strongly vulnerable to drowsiness and vigilance
fluctuations. Excessive sleepiness may alter concentration, alertness, and reaction times. As people
age, sleep undergoes some changes, becoming fragmented and less deep. However, the effects of
these modifications on daily life have not been sufficiently investigated. Recently, the assessment of
sleepiness became mandatory in Europe for people at risk who need the driving license release.

Pre-sleep cognitive intrusions about next-day activities, or proprioceptive and environmental stimuli are thought to trigger insomnia in neurocognitive models. Recent research showed that intrusive cognitions at bedtime may interact with sleep in influencing next-day emotional functioning; their effects on cognitive functioning, however, is largely unknown. We tested the effects of pre-sleep cognitive intrusions on subjective sleep and next-day cognitive performance in 80 participants, either with chronic insomnia or good sleepers.

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Purpose: Recent studies demonstrate that 5-Hz bilateral transcranial alternating current stimulation (θ-tACS) on fronto-temporal areas affects resting EEG enhancing cortical synchronization, but it does not affect subjective sleepiness. This dissociation raises questions on the resemblance of this effect to the physiological falling asleep process. The current study aimed to evaluate the ability of fronto-temporal θ-tACS to promote sleep.

The recently renewed focus on the human exploration of outer space has boosted the
interest toward a variety of questions regarding health of astronauts and cosmonauts.
Among the others, sleep has traditionally been considered a central issue. To extend
the research chances, human sleep alterations have been investigated in several
analog environments, called ICEs (Isolated, Confined, and Extreme). ICEs share different
features with the spaceflight itself and have been implemented in natural facilities and

Introduction: Some empirical data and clinical observation suggest that people with chronic insomnia have difficulties in assertiveness. However, the literature on this relationship is very poor. Some studies show that low assertiveness is linked to higher severity of depression. Additionally, several studies support the role of insomnia in predicting the onset of depression. The aim of this exploratory cross-sectional study is to evaluate if assertiveness predicts depression directly and/or indirectly through the mediation of insomnia.

Study Objectives: We aimed to compare 2-year-old children born preterm with children born full term regarding: (1) sleep characteristics, (2) temperament,
and (3) relations between sleep pattern and habits and temperament.
Methods: The study included 51 preterm children with normal cognitive, language, and motor development (mean = 20.94 months, standard deviation
[SD] = 4.08) and 57 full-term children (mean = 21.19, SD = 4.32). To assess sleep-related difficulties and habits and child temperament, mothers completed

Sleep is a naturally occurring physiological state that is required to sustain physical and mental health. Traditionally viewed as strictly regulated by top-down control mechanisms, sleep is now known to also originate locally. Glial cells are emerging as important contributors to the regulation of sleep-wake cycles, locally and among dedicated neural circuits.