The Dynamic Relationship between the Glymphatic System, Aging, Memory, and Sleep
Konstantinos I. Voumvourakis,
Eleni Sideri,
Georgios N. Papadimitropoulos,
Ioanna Tsantzali,
Paul Hewlett,
Dimitrios Kitsos,
Marianna Stefanou,
Anastasios Bonakis,
Sotirios Giannopoulos,
Georgios Tsivgoulis,
George P. Paraskevas
Affiliations
Konstantinos I. Voumvourakis
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Eleni Sideri
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Georgios N. Papadimitropoulos
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Ioanna Tsantzali
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Paul Hewlett
Applied Psychology Department, Llandaff Campus, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Western Avenue, Cardiff CF5 2YB, UK
Dimitrios Kitsos
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Marianna Stefanou
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Anastasios Bonakis
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Sotirios Giannopoulos
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
Georgios Tsivgoulis
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
George P. Paraskevas
2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece
The process of memory entails the activation of numerous neural networks and biochemical pathways throughout the brain. The phenomenon of memory decline in relation to aging has been the subject of extensive research for several decades. The correlation between the process of aging and memory is intricate and has various aspects to consider. Throughout the aging process, there are various alterations that take place within the brain and, as expected, affect other functions that have already been linked to memory and its function such as involving microcirculation and sleep. Recent studies provide an understanding of how these mechanisms may be interconnected through the relatively new concept of the glymphatic system. The glymphatic system is strongly correlated to sleep processes. Sleep helps the glymphatic system remove brain waste solutes. Astrocytes expand and contract to form channels for cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to wash through the brain and eliminate waste. However, the details have not been totally elusive, but the discovery of what we call the glymphatic system enables us to connect many pieces of physiology to understand how such factors are interconnected and the interplay between them. Thus, the purpose of this review is to discuss how the glymphatic system, sleep, memory, and aging are interconnected through a network of complex mechanisms and dynamic interactions.
