Objective: To study whether targeted memory reactivation (TMR) during sleep improves consolidation of a motor sequence learning task in people with Parkinson’s disease (PD) and healthy older adults (HOA).

Background: People with PD have impaired motor retention and automaticity, implying poor memory consolidation. Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep has been linked to consolidation in both PD and HOA, making sleep interventions appealing to boost motor retention. TMR consists of replaying sounds previously paired with a motor skill during learning during post-learning sleep. The effects of TMR on motor memory consolidation, retention and automaticity in PD are currently unknown.

Method: This randomized study included 20 PD patients (H&Y II, mean age 65.2) and 20 HOA (mean age 68.5). Participants learnt 2 finger-tapping sequences, each cued with a distinct melody. Next, one of the 2 melodies was reactivated during NREM sleep in a 2-hour post-learning nap. The sequences were tested pre- and post-nap, and after 24-hours, both in single and dual-task. Offline consolidation and 24-hour retention were computed as reaction time changes pre- to post-nap and pre-nap to 24-hour retest. Automaticity was measured as dual-task cost. Electrophysiological markers of sleep-dependent consolidation (i.e., spindle and slow wave density, amplitude and coupling) were compared between periods with TMR and silent periods of NREM sleep. The effect of TMR and how this differed between PD and HOA was tested with mixed ANOVAs.

Results: A significant main effect of time was found post-nap to retention on single-task performance (F(1,38)=35.1, p<0.01), indicative of motor learning across sessions. No difference between interventions with and without TMR was found, with similar consolidation between PD and HOA. Dual-task cost were similar between groups, interventions and time. Reduced spindle (F(1,34)=10.5, p<0.01) and increased slow wave densities (F(1,31)=6.9, p=0.01) were found during TMR versus silent periods, but no effect was apparent on spindle/slow wave amplitude and coupling.

Conclusion: TMR did not enhance motor learning, but its integration into task practice could boost long-term retention in both groups, as TMR modulated spindle and slow wave densities in both PD and HOA. This possible modulatory effect warrants further investigation.

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MDS Abstracts - https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/effects-of-targeted-memory-reactivation-during-sleep-on-motor-memory-consolidation-in-parkinsons-disease/