Neuroscientists at University of Buffalo have identified a sleep-promoting circuit inside the brainstem or the primitive part of the brain, whose activity appears to be both necessary and sufficient to produce deep sleep. This is only the second ‘sleep node’ in the mammalian brain that was identified to serve this function. To demonstrate the sleep node’s function, the researchers used molecular tools that activate neurons in this region of the brain and found the test animals quickly fell into deep sleep. Thus, the research highlights an alternate and novel therapy for treating sleep disorders like insomnia without using sedatives.