Thalamocortical arousal state

GABA-ergic neurons that themselves have been implicated in the modulation of thalamocortical arousal states such as wakefulness and REM sleep (Lee et al. 2001). 

Sleep-wake state alterations in PD can be broadly classified into disturbances of (1) thalamocortical arousal state and (2) excessive nocturnal movement (Rye and Bliwise 2004 Rye and Iranzo 2005). The former includes the loss of sleep spindles and SWS, daytime sleepiness, and intrusion of REM sleep into daytime naps (i.e. sleep onset REM periods, or SOREMs), and the latter encompass periodic leg movements of sleep (PLMs) and REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD). The pathophysiological basis of sleepiness and SOREMs appears to be dopaminergic cell loss in PD, though excessive nocturnal movements are not as clearly related to dopaminergic deficits. 

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