Biological rhythms and sleep in ageing and age-related diseases

The Biological rhythms and sleep in ageing and age-related diseases sub-group is related to the holistic point of view centered on sleep as a fundamental biological function to healthy ageing. Longevity has considerably increased over the past years, but this must be accompanied with a good quality of life, otherwise it transforms into a major burden with significant impact on health, social and economic sectors. Accordingly, the Mission of this innovative research topic is to contribute to explore the impact of sleep disorders, specifically obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and insomnia, the most prevalent sleep disorders worldwide, on ageing and age-related disorders. Sleep deprivation is a hallmark of OSA and insomnia and has been associated with the development of several comorbidities also common to ageing. Thus, similar to ageing, OSA and insomnia may have a systemic impact in the whole body, affecting longevity and quality of life. So, the objectives are: i) To explore OSA and insomnia impact on biological clocks; ii) To create a biomarker system of the two most prevalent sleep disorders (OSA and insomnia), with clinical application; iii) To assess the impact of OSA and insomnia on cellular and molecular hallmarks of ageing; iv) To highlight the significance of an early diagnosis to avoid the development of comorbidities; v) Points to the importance of increase awareness on a healthy sleep to delay ageing and age-related diseases. The group members have the expertise to establish cellular models of sleep disorders (OSA and insomnia), evaluation of physiology, cellular and molecular ageing markers (namely autophagy, senescence, inflammation), gene transfer approaches and circadian rhythm analysis. Moreover, the group has expertise to organize pre-clinical studies and public engagement activities.