RT Book, Section A1 Waxman, Stephen G. SR Print(0) ID 1171521355 T1 The Reticular Formation T2 Clinical Neuroanatomy, 29e YR 2020 FD 2020 PB McGraw-Hill Education PP New York, NY SN 9781260452358 LK neurology.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=1171521355 RD 2024/10/14 AB The neural basis for consciousness has fascinated scientists and philosophers for centuries. The reticular formation of the brain was recognized in the 1950s as a master regulation of consciousness. The reticular formation plays a central role in the regulation of the state of consciousness and arousal. It consists of a complex network of interconnected circuits of neurons in the tegmentum of the brain stem, the lateral hypothalamic area, and the medial, intralaminar, and reticular nuclei of the thalamus (Fig 18–1). Many of these neurons are serotonergic (using serotonin as their neurotransmitter), or noradrenergic. Axons from these nonspecific thalamic nuclei project to most of the cerebral cortex, where they modulate the level of activity of large numbers of neurons.