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Updated: Dec 10, 2025

Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood
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Measuring Neural Mechanisms Underlying Sleep-Dependent Memory Consolidation During Naps in Early Childhood

Published on: October 2, 2019

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THE DEVELOPING BRAIN REVEALED DURING SLEEP

Mark S Blumberg1,2,3, James C Dooley1, Greta Sokoloff1,2

  • 1Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.

Current Opinion in Physiology
|September 1, 2020
PubMed

Insights

Newborn rat sleep is crucial for processing sensory input and developing brain connectivity. Sleep reveals early motor cortex activity, establishing maps before motor control emerges, informing infant embodiment understanding.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Sleep Research

Background:

  • Sleep is a significant part of early development.
  • Understanding infant brain activity requires studying sleep.
  • Recent advancements allow recording sleep in newborn rodents.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of sleep in infant brain activity.
  • To explore sensory processing and functional connectivity during sleep in newborns.
  • To examine the developing primary motor cortex during sleep.

Main Methods:

  • Recording sleep-related brain activity in rat pups.
  • Analyzing sensory input processing during sleep versus wakefulness.
  • Mapping functional activity in the developing primary motor cortex.

Main Results:

  • Sleep, more than wakefulness, is critical for sensorimotor system processing and connectivity in rat pups.
  • Sleep uniquely demonstrates functional activity in the developing primary motor cortex.
  • A somatosensory map is established in the primary motor cortex during sleep before motor control develops.

Conclusions:

  • Sleep plays a vital role in sensorimotor system development and sensory processing in early life.
  • The developing primary motor cortex shows unique functional activity during sleep.
  • These findings contribute to understanding the origins of embodiment in human infants.

Keywords:
REM sleepbrain rhythmscorollary dischargeembodimentfunctional connectivitymyoclonic twitchingneurodevelopment disorderssensorimotor integrationsensory developmentsomatosensory

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