Boosting brain waves in sleep improves rats’ memory

Strengthening activity of some brainwaves in rats’ while they sleep improves their performance on a memory test. If we can boost these in people, it could lead to new treatments for dementia and other memory impairments.

Memories are encoded in unique patterns of activity between neurons. Each time we learn or experience something new, a subset of neurons forms connections. These connections then strengthen while we sleep, reinforcing the memory. This process is known as memory consolidation.