Emotional bias of sleep-dependent processing shifts from negative to positive with aging

Abstract

Age-related memory decline has been proposed to result partially from impairments in memory consolidation over sleep. However, such decline may reflect a shift toward selective processing of positive information with age rather than impaired sleep-related mechanisms. In the current study, young and older adults viewed negative and neutral pictures or positive and neutral pictures and underwent a recognition test after sleep or wake. Subjective emotional reactivity and affect were also measured. Compared to waking, sleep preserved valence ratings and memory for positive but not negative pictures in older adults and negative but not positive pictures in young adults. In older adults, memory for positive pictures was associated with slow wave sleep. Furthermore, slow wave sleep predicted positive affect in older adults but was inversely related to positive affect in young adults. These relationships were strongest for older adults with high memory for positive pictures and young adults with high memory for negative pictures. Collectively, these results indicate preserved but selective sleep-dependent memory processing with healthy aging that may be biased to enhance emotional well-being.

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Chronically Impairs Sleep- and Wake-Dependent Emotional Processing

“…Further, we 21,22 and others 23,24 demonstrated sleep and wake differentially impact emotion generation (eg, self-reported valence ratings). Specifically, when individuals are shown the same set of negative stimuli twice (with a period of sleep between viewing sessions), emotionality to negative stimuli is preserved.…”

“…[20][21][22] In a separate study, we found sleep-dependent memory consolidation may causally impact subsequent (ie, next-day) mood. Specifically, we found sleep staging predicts post-sleep affect/mood but only when sleep-dependent emotional memory consolidation occurred.…”

“…32 The rest were from an in-house set, chosen to match the IAPS pictures in content and emotionality. 22,33 Normative data from our lab found negative pictures were moderate to high in arousal, and neutral pictures were low in arousal.…”

“…Specifically, we found sleep staging predicts post-sleep affect/mood but only when sleep-dependent emotional memory consolidation occurred. 22 These findings indicate emotional memory consolidation plays a critical role in the relationship between sleep and emotional state. Therefore, a disruption in this underlying mechanism (sleep-dependent memory consolidation), potentially due to sleep stage or sleep quality alterations, can have consequences for emotional well-being.…”

“…To test this hypothesis, we utilized an emotional memory paradigm. 21,22,25 We predicted emotional sleep-dependent memory consolidation would be reduced in a chronic, mild TBI population. Additionally, given the reduction in REM sleep following a mild TBI, 16 the second study aim was to assess whether sleep-dependent emotion generation is intact in a mild TBI population.…”