Alzheimer's Research Increasingly Focused on Links to Sleep and Other Behaviors

A new Elsevier report observed a growing focus on sleep and other behaviors in Alzheimer's research, according to Medical Xpress . Elsevier reviewed research published since the 1970s to gain a wide-ranging global perspective spanning 50 years. The study found researchers investigating sleep are developing new theories on early warning signs of Alzheimer's that could help retard its development. Concurrent with growing emphasis on sleep is increasing interest in dominant subjects like the amyloid-ß protein, and behavioral topics such as learning and gait. "Using our research analytics platform SciVal, which computes granular bibliometric analyses from Scopus data, we're able to drill down deep into sometimes hidden clusters of citation activity within Alzheimer's research," said Elsevier Analytical Services' Maria de Kleijn. "Although the portion of papers that focus on the relationship between sleep and Alzheimer's is relatively small, citation activity within that cluster tells us that it could be where research is heading in the future." Analysis noted more research is carried out with male rather than female subjects. Moreover, the main research clusters are related to the molecular mechanisms involved in producing toxic entities in cells, and to studies with human subjects in clinical research, epidemiology, and population health research contexts.