Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation in Developmental Disabilities: Cognitive and Neural Factors Driving Heterogeneity Across Diagnoses

Sleep plays an important role in the long-term consolidation of memories across development. The current review examines sleep-dependent memory consolidation in five developmental disability diagnoses that experience significant sleep disturbances. A focus is placed on understanding how specific neural and mnemonic features of particular diagnoses contribute to distinct alterations to consolidation.

Sleep and memory changes have been identified across diagnoses, but they differ in the extent to which sleep-related consolidation processes are specifically affected. In addition, Down syndrome may represent a unique case where sleep actually impairs memory consolidation, potentially related to profound disruptions to hippocampal-prefrontal connectivity.

Deficits in sleep-dependent memory consolidation are heterogeneous across developmental disabilities and are caused by a confluence of cognitive and neural factors. Sleep and memory research should target these specific population profiles. Future research should also examine sleep effects on forms of memory that may depend on alternate neural pathways, such as emotional memory.