Brain waves control the impact of noise on sleep During sleep,
our perception of the environment decreases. However the extent
to which the human brain responds to surrounding noises during
sleep remains unclear. In a study published this week in
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS),
researchers from University of Liège (Belgium) used brain
imaging to study responses to sounds during sleep. They show
that brain activity in the face of noise is controlled by
specific brain waves during sleep. In particular, waves called
sleep ‘spindles’ prevent the transmission of sounds to auditory
brain regions. Conversely, when sounds are associated with brain
waves called ‘K-complexes’, activation of auditory areas is
larger. Our perception of the environment is therefore not
continuously reduced during sleep, but rather varies throughout
sleep under the influence of particular brain waves. In this
study, the research team led by Dr Thanh Dang-Vu and Prof.
Pierre Maquet (Cyclotron Research Center, Univers