Mechanisms of sleep control.

Neurons in the dorsolateral pontine reticular formation, in interaction with other brainstem and forebrain regions, generate the basic phenomena of rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep. Non-REM sleep is the product of multiple control mechanisms in the forebrain and brainstem. Despite considerable progress in the identification of generation mechanisms, the functions of sleep remain a mystery. I hypothesize that REM sleep has a role in the regulation of receptor sensitivity in the central and peripheral nervous systems.