Power spectral analysis of EEG activity obtained from cortical and subcortical sites during the vigilance states of the cat.

There is considerable evidence that the raphé system and the region of the nucleus tractus solitarious (NTS), including the area postrema, play significant roles in slow-wave sleep mechanisms and in EEG synchronization. Studies of the interactions between these systems and the neocortex are much needed. If neuronal activity in these lower brainstem regions regulates the degree of cortical synchrony then a high degree of correspondence between the EEG of the area postrema or raphé complex with that of the cortex might be expected. In order to quantitate the reequency characteristics of the EEG obtained from these subcortical sites (nucleus raphé dorsalis, area postrema, as well as anatomical controls adjacent to these regions) during the different vigilance states (waking, slow-wave sleep, REM sleep) in the cat, power spectral analyses techniques were employed. Comparison of these subcortical spectral characteristic with those obtained from cortical (frontal and occipital) sites during the same vigilance state, show that the spectral measures elicited from the region of the area postrema closely correspond to that of the cortex, particularly during slow-wave sleep. On the other hand, the EEG of the anterior portion of the raphé region, although exhibiting a substantial low frequency component during slow-wave sleep in comparison to wakefulness does not show a statistically significant shift to low frequencies such as occurs in the area postrema or the cortex. These results suggest that the increases in the low frequency content of the cortical EEG sites during slow-wave sleep results from synchronizing inputs from the area postrema to a greater extent than from the raphé complex.