Critical periods and Autism Spectrum Disorders, a role for sleep

TL;DR

This review explores how sleep influences critical period plasticity in brain development and discusses its potential role in Autism Spectrum Disorder, emphasizing the need for further research on sleep and plasticity in ASD models.

Contribution

It highlights the connection between sleep deficits, plasticity impairments, and ASD, emphasizing the importance of studying developmental trajectories in neurodevelopmental disorders.

Findings

Sleep enhances critical period plasticity in mammals.

Most ASD rodent models with sleep deficits also show plasticity deficits.

There is a lack of studies on sleep and plasticity during critical periods in ASD models.

Abstract

Brain development relies on both experience and genetically defined programs. Time windows where certain brain circuits are particularly receptive to external stimuli, resulting in heightened plasticity, are referred to as critical periods. Sleep is thought to be essential for normal brain development. Importantly, studies have shown that sleep enhances critical period plasticity and promotes experience-dependent synaptic pruning in the developing mammalian brain. Therefore, normal plasticity during critical periods depends on proper sleep. Problems falling and staying asleep occur at a higher rate in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) relative to typical development. In this review, we explore the potential link between sleep, critical period plasticity, and ASD. First, we review the importance of critical period plasticity in typical development and the role of sleep in this process. Next, we summarize the evidence linking ASD with deficits in synaptic plasticity in rodent models of high-confident ASD gene candidates. We then show that almost all the high-confidence rodent models of ASD that show sleep deficits also display plasticity deficits. Given how important sleep is for critical period plasticity, it is essential to understand the connections between synaptic plasticity, sleep, and brain development in ASD. However, studies investigating sleep or plasticity during critical periods in ASD mouse models are lacking. Therefore, we highlight an urgent need to consider developmental trajectory in studies of sleep and plasticity in neurodevelopmental disorders.