FAA Office of Aerospace Medicine 
Civil Aerospace Medical Institute

Report No: DOT/FAA/AM-25/09

Title and Subtitle: Biomarkers for Noise-Induced Sleep Disruption

Report Date: April 2025

Authors:
Hilary A. Uyhelji (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3433-8320)
Mathias Basner (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8453-0812)
Christopher W. Jones (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8173-721X)

Abstract:

Noise experienced by the general population in proximity to airports and aviation flight routes can result in disrupted sleep. Sleep disruption and fragmentation may be mitigated by wearing earplugs or introducing broadband noise (e.g., pink noise) into the bedroom. However, these countermeasures are poorly investigated and understood. The FAA ASCENT has supported the University of Pennsylvania in investigating earplugs and pink noise to mitigate sleep disruption from simulated aircraft noise, using approaches such as physiological and neurobehavioral performance monitoring. The FAA Civil Aerospace Medical Institute complemented these efforts by receipt of blood samples collected from human subjects exposed to the simulated aircraft noise and monitored by the University of Pennsylvania. Ribonucleic acid (RNA) was extracted from the blood followed by total RNA sequencing and differential gene expression analyses, which provided molecular insights about human responses to noise and the mitigations tested. Altogether 1,246 genes were differentially expressed in response to the experimental exposure condition (control without noise, pink noise at a level of 50 dBA, simulated aircraft noise, and simulated aircraft noise with a mitigation: pink noise at 40 dBA, pink noise at 50 dBA, or earplugs). There were 2,181 genes associated with awakenings during noise exposure.

Key Words: Aviation noise; Pink noise; Sleep loss; Fatigue

No. of Pages: 10