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In 1949, Moruzzi and Magoun discovered that electrical stimulation of the reticular formation in the midbrain produces behavioral arousal and EEG desynchronization (see J Neuropsychiatry Clin Neurosci 1995; 7:251). Subsequently, the idea evolved that waking could be activated by spontaneous neuronal activity in the brainstem, without prerequisite sensory stimulation. Benarroch provides an important, clearly written account of the midline and intralaminar thalamic nuclei, major neuroanatomic components of the reticular activating system.
The heterogeneous parcellations of the midline and intralaminar thalamic nuclei receive multiple brainstem inputs that, in turn, project to different cortical regions; thereby, they subserve different functio…