THE DREAMING BRAIN: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY SYNTHESIS OF NEURAL MECHANISMS, COGNITIVE FUNCTIONS AND PATHOLOGICAL MANIFESTATIONS
Universal Journal of Pharmaceutical Research May 15, 2025 Mostafa Essam Eissa
Dreaming, a universal experience tied to REM sleep, results from complex interactions among brain regions and chemical systems. Neuroimaging shows heightened activity in emotion-related areas like the amygdala and hippocampus alongside reduced activity in the prefrontal cortex, explaining why dreams feel vivid but are often illogical. Cholinergic pathways trigger REM sleep, while suppressed serotonin and norepinephrine disrupt reality monitoring. Dreaming helps consolidate memories, regulate emotions through fear extinction, and boost creative thinking. Disrupted dreaming in conditions like PTSD with nightmares or depression with reduced dream recall reflects underlying neural imbalances. Treatments such as SSRIs and cognitive therapies target these mechanisms. Advances like fMRI-based dream decoding and cross-cultural studies reveal shared neurophysiology across societies. This synthesis frames dreaming as a window into consciousness, sleep-related cognition, and neuropsychiatric treatments.