REM sleep

REM sleep, one of two phases in the sleep cycle, in which a person experiences dreams, atonia (reduced muscle tone), irregular closed eye movements, and elevated levels of brain activity. The other phase of the human sleep cycle is known as non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. A single sleep cycle, with both NREM and REM phases, lasts about 90 to 110 minutes; most adults complete the cycle 4 to 6 times per night. In addition to humans, REM sleep has been identified in other mammals, in birds, and in a few species of reptiles and invertebrates; its role in the sleep cycle varies between species.

About 20 to 25 percent of a human adult’s sleep cycle and more than 50 percent of an infant’s sleep cycle consists of REM sleep. In adults, early REM periods are shorter (about 10 minutes), with their duration increasing up to about 60 minutes in adults as the night progresses. During REM sleep, the brain selectively suppresses responses to sensory stimuli; for example, while loud noises may not awaken an exhausted mother, the sound of her infant crying may cause her to awaken immediately.

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sleep: REM sleep

Features

During REM sleep, the eyes move in many directions while closed. The directionality of movement is irregular and unpredictable. However, researchers think that eye movement direction correlates with actions occurring in dreams. This has been found to be true in mice, in which eye movements and the activity of brain cells that perceive head orientation were monitored simultaneously. Although mice were immobilized and sleeping, head orientation cell activation predicted eye movement direction. Also, REM sleep eye movements activate the visual cortex of the brain, which does not occur when individuals who are awake close their eyes and make eye movements.

REM sleep is also characterized by waves of brain activity that are similar to those of awake periods, based on electroencephalography (EEG) recordings. Although much of sleep is dominated by high-amplitude, low-frequency waves, the cortical waves that occur during REM sleep include low-amplitude, high-frequency beta waves, which are present during awake periods. For this reason, REM sleep is sometimes called paradoxical sleep. REM sleep also produces high-amplitude rhythmic brain waves called theta waves in the hippocampus, which is associated with processing and storing memories and functions in spatial processing and navigation.

The changes in muscle tone in REM sleep, called atonia, a temporary paralysis of skeletal muscles, are distinct. Atonia occurs in gravity-bearing muscles that are not needed for breathing or for eye movement. Some researchers think that this paralysis occurs to prevent individuals from acting on their dreams. The presence of dreams during REM sleep is known from vivid reports of people who are woken during REM sleep. In addition to atonia, other physiological changes that occur during REM sleep include temperature fluctuation, elevated oxygen consumption, increased levels of acetylcholine (which may be involved in memory consolidation), irregular breathing, and fluctuations in blood pressure.

Function and regulation

The function of REM sleep is not well-established. Some scientists think that REM sleep has an important role in brain development. This is supported by the ways in which patterns of sleep change with development. For example, newborns enter sleep in a REM phase, rather than an NREM phase, as adults do. This patterns lasts until they are three months old, when their circadian rhythm becomes better established. In addition, the percentage of time spent in REM sleep declines to adult proportions by around age two. REM sleep may also play a role in memory consolidation and learning, an idea supported by theta wave activity in the hippocampus during REM sleep; in mice, inhibiting this activity reduces memory.

Regulation of REM sleep depends on coordination of many parts of the brain. The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), located in the hypothalamus, controls circadian rhythm and therefore the daily timing of REM sleep. The pons helps initiate REM sleep, and specific regions of the pons control atonia and rapid eye movement. Activation of the hippocampus and the amygdala during REM sleep may help regulate memory and emotion while dreaming. Meanwhile, the thalamus blocks the brain from processing sensory information from the environment, and the neurotransmitter GABA, released by the anterior hypothalamus, inhibits brain regions associated with wakefulness, including parts of the hypothalamus and brainstem.

REM sleep disorders

Problems with REM sleep may be present in individuals affected by depression, who use drugs or alcohol, or who are affected by any of various health conditions that alter circadian rhythm. Often, REM sleep issues are detected with a polysomnogram, which takes EEG recordings as a person sleeps. The test collects data on brain waves, oxygen levels, body and eye movements, heart rate, and breathing.

In persons with narcolepsy, the sleep cycle advances quickly into the REM phase, resulting in deprivation of NREM deep sleep. Affected individuals are chronically tired and may start brief REM sleep episodes in the day, because their sleep cycle is dysregulated. Narcolepsy also is associated with frequent episodes of atonia.

REM sleep behaviour disorder is a disturbance of the temporary paralysis mechanism that occurs in REM. Thus, persons with this disorder tend to act out or speak in response to their dreams or nightmares, kicking or yelling as they sleep. The condition differs from sleepwalking, which occurs during the NREM phases of a sleep cycle. REM sleep behaviour disorder is associated with an increased risk of developing certain neurodegenerative diseases, including dementia and Parkinson disease.