A half-center oscillator regulates sleep pressure.

A half-center oscillator in Drosophila sleep-control neurons produces slow-wave activity that is causally linked to sleep regulation.

• Why it matters: Understanding how neural oscillations relate to sleep pressure can clarify mechanisms underlying sleep regulation and potential targets for sleep disorders.
• What they did: Researchers identified bistable neurons in the dorsal fan-shaped body that oscillate between states via interhemispheric inhibitory glutamatergic synapses, and manipulated these to assess effects on sleep.
• The result: Disrupting glutamate release impaired SWA and sleep rebound, while optogenetic stimulation of SWA promoted sleep, indicating that oscillatory activity encodes sleep pressure and influences sleep-wake transitions.