SLEEP & AGEING (symposium session): Sleep and biomarkers of healthy aging: from EEG signatures to blood-based neurodegeneration markers
Tracks
Track 1
| Thursday, November 12, 2026 |
| 1:45 PM - 3:15 PM |
Details
Ageing populations and rising rates of neurodegenerative disorders make identifying sleep-related risk factors for age-associated cognitive and physical decline an urgent public health priority. This session examines the bidirectional relationship of sleep with neurodegeneration and frailty, presenting cutting-edge findings across four domains: (1) sleep EEG biomarkers as neurophysiological signatures of brain ageing; (2) sleep-dependent memory consolidation and novel cognitive treatment approaches; (3) blood-based biomarkers for neurodegeneration including FDA-approved Alzheimer's pathology tests and their relationship to sleep; and (4) the intersection of sleep disorders, frailty, and falls risk in older adults. Together, these presentations will equip clinicians and researchers with new insights into how sleep monitoring and treatment can support healthy brain ageing.
Speaker
Dr Camilla Hoyos
Associate Professor
Macquarie University
Chair - introduction and overview
Biography
Ms Narelle Wilson
Consumers for Research
Woolcock Institute of Medical Research
Lived experience advocate - Q&A
1:45 PM - 1:55 PMBiography
Having navigated the health system without success for her deteriorating sleep, Narelle discovered the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research online. She’s now a member of the Woolcock Consumers for Research team. Woolcock’s Centre for Chronic Diseases of Ageing established the team with a vision to reduce the burden of sleep and respiratory disorders in ageing and a mission to undertake world-class research through meaningful and collaborative relationships with members of the community. The team of 12 members with lived experience of sleep or respiratory disorders works collaboratively with researchers and clinicians to steer new avenues of research for better person-centred outcomes.
Assoc Prof Angela D'Rozario
Associate Professor
Macquarie University
Sleep EEG biomarkers of brain ageing and cognitive health
1:55 PM - 2:15 PMBiography
Associate Professor Angela D’Rozario is a sleep neurophysiologist at Macquarie University and Head of the Sleep Neurobiology Research Program at the Woolcock Institute of Medical Research. Her research focuses on sleep neurophysiology, sleep disorders, brain ageing and cognitive function, with a particular interest in high-density EEG and individual differences in responses to sleep disruption. She is an NHMRC Emerging Leadership Fellow and a Board Director of the Australia and New Zealand Sleep Science Association (ANZSSA). She serves on the ASA SDU Conference Organising Committee and Research Committee.
Dr Anna Mullins
Research Fellow
Monash University
Cognition and sleep-dependent memory: novel treatment approaches
2:15 PM - 2:35 PMBiography
Anna investigates innovative approaches to modulate sleep physiology to improve health across multiple populations. Before joining Monash University in 2025, she was an Assistant Professor at Mount Sinai in New York, researching links between sleep, cognition, and neurodegeneration using brain and biological biomarkers. She holds a PhD from the University of Sydney and Woolcock Institute and a Bachelor of Neuroscience and Psychology from UWA. As a RPSGT since 2004 and ANZSSA Board Director, her expertise focuses on physiological signal analysis and interpretation, and understanding the influence of sleep-wake physiology and psychology on brain health.
Prof Miranda Lim
Professor
Oregon Health and Science University
Blood-based biomarkers for neurodegeneration and their role in sleep
2:35 PM - 2:55 PMBiography
Dr. Miranda Lim is Professor in the Department of Neurology at Oregon Health & Science University and holds a joint appointment at the Veterans Affairs Portland Health Care System. She has served as MPI and director of the Oregon Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (NIH P30 Center) and Associate Director of VA's Advanced Fellowship in Mental Illness Research and Treatment (MIRT) for VA's VISN20 Northwest Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC). Dr. Lim is a physician-scientist board-certified in Neurology and Sleep Medicine, and leads a combined basic, translational, and clinical research program, Sleep & Health Applied Research Program (SHARP).
Ronaldo Piovezan
Senior Consultant
Royal Adelaide Hospital
The crosstalk between biomarkers of frailty and sleep disorders in older adults
2:55 PM - 3:15 PMBiography
Dr Ronaldo Piovezan is a geriatrician and sleep medicine researcher trained in sleep medicine based in Adelaide.. He is a Senior Clinical Lecturer at the University of Adelaide and holds clinical appointments with the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
His research focuses on the relationship between sleep, ageing and age-related conditions, with particular interests in obstructive sleep apnoea, frailty, sarcopenia, falls and cognitive decline. His work integrates geriatric medicine and sleep medicine to better understand how sleep and circadian disruption influence health and functional outcomes in older adults.
Assoc Prof Melinda Jackson
Associate Professor
Monash University
Chair
Biography
