Effects of pontine lesions on brain stem polyneuronal activity during sleep in infant rats

Multiple-unit activity was recorded from residual neurons in the gigantocellular field (FTG) of the pontine reticular formation in young rats after extensive contralateral FTG lesions. Epochs of normal appearing active sleep continued to occur but were characterized by abnormally low FTG neuronal firing rates. In contrast, during epochs of active sleep with exaggerated motility, the FTG discharge frequencies approximated those observed during active wakefulness.