[Michel Jouvet, from the discovery of paradoxical sleep and muscle atonia to the role of neuropeptides].

This article focuses on the contributions made by Michel Jouvet about the neurons responsible for generating the muscle atonia of paradoxical sleep (REM sleep). He was the first to describe the neurons responsible for muscle atonia during paradoxical sleep using "pontine" cats (in which the forebrain has been removed down to the pons) and localized pontine lesions. Also discussed is the research going on in the 1980s, when Michel Jouvet was hunting for the hypnogenic factor. At that time, he thought that it was secreted by the hypophysis; but this factor finally turned out to be controlled by the hypocretin/orexin and melanin concentrating hormone neurones located in the lateral hypothalamus. Several unforgettable moments with Michel Jouvet are described which occurred between 1983 and his last moments with us.