Data from a new study in mice shows that a common sleep aid protects the brain from damage seen in neurodegenerative disorders, in addition to improving rest. Specifically, scientists from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis (WashU Medicine) and their collaborators elsewhere found that lemborexant and similar drugs may prevent the harmful buildup of tau protein, which is associated with the development of diseases like Alzheimer’s, progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal syndrome, and some frontotemporal dementias.