Researchers at QST have found that tau buildup in progressive supranuclear palsy may affect brain networks involved in thinking and behaviour. The findings suggest that symptoms appear to arise not only from where tau accumulates in the brain, but also from how those affected areas are connected to distant brain regions.

In a study published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia, a team led by Shannon L. Macauley, Ph.D., an associate professor of physiology in the UK College of Medicine, and first author Nicholas J. Constantino, Ph.D., a recent UK doctoral graduate, revealed that microglia are the primary drivers of sleep loss. By using a drug to temporarily remove these cells in animal models, the researchers successfully restored over two hours of sleep per day, providing a new target for treating the disease that Macauley described as “paradigm shifting.”