BACKGROUND Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is greatest in the developing brain, is driven by acetylcholine, and may represent a protected time for neuroplasticity. Recently published data from our lab observed that children with autism spent significantly less time in this state during a single night recording than did typically developing children and those with developmental delay without auti...

Considerable evidence suggests that the neurotransmitter gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic system and pedunculopontine tegmentum (PPT) in the brain stem are critically involved in the regulation of rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep. GABA and its various receptors are normally present in the PPT cholinergic cell compartment. The aim of this study was to identify the role of GABA and its receptor...

The placebo effect is a neurobiological and psychophysiological process known to influence perceived pain relief. Optimization of placebo analgesia may contribute to the clinical efficacy and effectiveness of medication for acute and chronic pain management. We know that the placebo effect operates through two main mechanisms, expectations and learning, which is also influenced by sleep. Moreov...

Work in heterologous systems has revealed that members of the Rad, Rem, Rem2, Gem/Kir (RGK) family of small GTP-binding proteins profoundly inhibit L-type Ca(2+) channels via three mechanisms: 1), reduction of membrane expression; 2), immobilization of the voltage-sensors; and 3), reduction of Po without impaired voltage-sensor movement. However, the question of which mode is the critical one f...

Positive symptoms in schizophrenia decrease the requirement for REM sleep and reduce its pressure, while negative symptoms increase the need for REM sleep. This need cannot be satisfied because REM sleep in schizophrenia is functionally insufficient. This insufficiency may relate to the decreased melatonin level. Melatonin treatment restores REM-sleep functional efficiency in patients with diff...

Recently described functional connections between basal ganglia and brainstem circuits provide a neurobiologic basis for the absence of REM sleep atonia in Parkinson's disease (PD). However, identifying atypical REM sleep in PD may be problematic. Reliable sleep staging has never been demonstrated in such patients. In this study, 3 experienced scorers independently evaluated overnight polysomno...

Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep enhances hippocampus-dependent associative memory, but REM deprivation has little impact on striatum-dependent procedural learning. Antidepressant medications are known to inhibit REM sleep, but it is not well understood if antidepressant treatments impact learning and memory. We explored antidepressant REM suppression effects on learning by training animals daily...

S leep and dream psychophysiology has been dominated for many years and, under certain aspects still today, by strong bias which considered the dreamlike mental activity as a peculiar aspect of REM sleep. The discovery of the REM phase (1), which determined a change in sleep research, raised great expectations. Going by the results of the first experiments on REM sleep, Dement and Kleitmann (2)...