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Cited by 27Sleep and Wakefulness ResearchPhilosophy and Theoretical ScienceSleep and related disorders

Why Does Rem Sleep Occur? A Wake-Up Hypothesis1

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Klemm, W. R.·2011·Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience
DOI 10.3389/fnsys.2011.00073PMC PMC3166790
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Abstract

Brain activity differs in the various sleep stages and in conscious wakefulness. Awakening from sleep requires restoration of the complex nerve impulse patterns in neuronal network assemblies necessary to re-create and sustain conscious wakefulness. Herein I propose that the brain uses rapid eye movement (REM) to help wake itself up after it has had a sufficient amount of sleep. Evidence suggesting this hypothesis includes the facts that, (1) when first going to sleep, the brain plunges into Stage N3 (formerly called Stage IV), a deep abyss of sleep, and, as the night progresses, the sleep is punctuated by episodes of REM that become longer and more frequent toward morning, (2) conscious-like dreams are a reliable component of the REM state in which the dreamer is an active mental observer or agent in the dream, (3) the last awakening during a night's sleep usually occurs in a REM episode during or at the end of a dream, (4) both REM and awake consciousness seem to arise out of a similar brainstem ascending arousal system (5) N3 is a functionally perturbed state that eventually must be corrected so that embodied brain can direct adaptive behavior, and (6) cortico-fugal projections to brainstem arousal areas provide a way to trigger increased cortical activity in REM to progressively raise the sleeping brain to the threshold required for wakefulness. This paper shows how the hypothesis conforms to common experience and has substantial predictive and explanatory power regarding the phenomenology of sleep in terms of ontogeny, aging, phylogeny, abnormal/disease states, cognition, and behavioral physiology. That broad range of consistency is not matched by competing theories, which are summarized herein. Specific ways to test this wake-up hypothesis are suggested. Such research could lead to a better understanding of awake consciousness.

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  • NREM sleep is required for optimal wakefulness and cognitive function the following day.

    “REM sleep occurs after slow-wave sleep and allows for emotional memory processing, while NREM sleep is required for optimal wakefulness and cognitive function the following day [19,20,21,22,23].”

    From The Cyclical Battle of Insomnia and Mental Health Impairment in Firefighters: A Narrative Review (2024) · cites this paper as [23]

    The ‘Fitting Common Experience into the New Explanation’ section describes slow-wave sleep as serving restorative functions and suggests it is essential to consciousness. But the paper attributes preparation for the next day’s activity and cognition chiefly to REM sleep (Comparison with Competing Theories; Conclusion), not specifically to NREM sleep. The stronger claim that NREM is required for optimal wakefulness and cognitive function the following day is therefore not established by this source. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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  • REM sleep occurs after slow-wave sleep and allows for emotional memory processing.

    “REM sleep occurs after slow-wave sleep and allows for emotional memory processing, while NREM sleep is required for optimal wakefulness and cognitive function the following day [19,20,21,22,23].”

    From The Cyclical Battle of Insomnia and Mental Health Impairment in Firefighters: A Narrative Review (2024) · cites this paper as [23]

    The Abstract (page unavailable) says REM normally follows a long sequence of slow-wave sleep. The Conclusion (page unavailable) suggests REM may help consolidate certain memories, but does not identify emotional memories specifically; the paper's proposed primary function of REM is to help the brain recover from deep sleep. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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Research works printed but not linked: 9

  1. Bremer F. Terzuolo C. (1953). Interaction de l'écorce cérébrale et de la formation réticularée du tronc cerebral dans le mechanism de l'éveil et du maintien de l'activité vigile. J. Physiol. Pathol. Gén. 45, 56– 57 13062134
  2. Dement W. C. Mitler M. M. (1974). “An introduction to sleep,” in Basic Sleep Mechanisms, eds Petre-Quadens O. Schlag J. D. (New York: Academic Press), 271– 296
  3. Evarts E. V. (1967). “Unit activity in sleep and wakefulness,” in The Neurosciences – A Study Program, eds Quarton G. C. Melnechuk T. Schmitt F. O. (New York: Rockefeller University Press), 545– 556
  4. Klemm W. R. (1990a). “The behavioral readiness response,” in Brainstem Mechanisms of Behavior, eds Klemm W. R. Vertes R. P. (New York: John Wiley and Sons), 105– 145
  5. Petre-Quadens O. (1974). “Sleep in the human newborn,” in Basic Sleep Mechanisms, eds Petre-Quadens O. Schlag J. D. (New York: Academic Press), 355– 376
  6. Sakai K. (1980). “Some anatomical and physiological properties of ponto-mesencephalic tegmental neurons with special reference to PGO waves and postural atonia during paradoxical sleep,” in The Reticular Formation Revisited, eds Hobson J. A. Brazier M. A. B. (New York: Raven Press), 427– 447
  7. Vertes R. P. (1990). “Brainstem mechanisms of slow-wave sleep and REM sleep,” in Brainstem Mechanisms of Behavior, eds Klemm W. R. Vertes R. P. (New York: Wiley and Sons), 535– 584
  8. Weitzman E. (1972). “Periodicity in sleep and waking states,” in The Sleeping Brain. Perspectives in the Brain Sciences, Vol. 1, ed. Chase M. H. (Los Angeles: University of California), 193– 238
  9. Yingling C. D. Skinner J. E. (1977). “Gating of thalamic input to cerebral cortex by nucleus reticularis thalami,” in Prog. Clin. Neurophysiol., Vol. 1, Attention, Voluntary Contraction and Event-related Cerebral Potentials, ed. Desmedt J. E. (Basel: Karger), 70– 96

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Authors
Klemm, W. R.
Affiliations
Texas A&M University (US)
Corresponding author
Klemm, W. R.
ORCID
Klemm, W. R.
Venue
Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience
Publisher
Frontiers Media SA
Published
2011
Volume
5
Pages
73-73
ISSN
1662-5137 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3389/fnsys.2011.00073
PMC
PMC3166790
OpenAlex
W2021499094
Cited by
27
References
92
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 1 · 2012: 1
FWCI
0.81
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Sleep and Wakefulness Research
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Philosophy and Theoretical Science
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
Keywords
REM sleep, sleep stages, slow-wave sleep, dream consciousness, consciousness, sleep-wake transition, sleep disorders

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