Cortical reactivity and effective connectivity during REM sleep in humans
Cognitive Neuroscience July 1, 2010 Marcello Massimini, Fabio Ferrarelli, Michael J. Murphy et al. 205 citations
During the first REM sleep episode of the night, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) triggered widespread and differentiated patterns of cortical activation on electroencephalography (EEG), similar to those observed during wakefulness. In contrast, during NREM sleep, cortical activations became more local and stereotypical, indicating impaired intracortical dialogue. These findings suggest that TMS combined with high-density EEG can probe the internal dialogue of the thalamocortical system, potentially offering a method to assess brain function in patients who are unable to move or communicate.