To establish the strength of the relationship between the nocturnal oscillations in plasma renin activity (PRA) and the sleep stage patterns, 42 PRA profiles from blood collected at 10-min intervals and the concomitant polygraphic sleep recordings were analyzed. In all cases, PRA curves exactly reflected the pattern of sleep stage distribution. When sleep cycles were complete, PRA levels oscillated at a regular 100-min period, with a strong spectral density. Declining PRA levels always coincided with REM sleep phases and increasing levels with NREM sleep phases. More precisely, peak levels corresponded to the transition from deep sleep stages toward lighter ones. The start of the rises in PRA generally marked the transition from REM sleep to stage 2. For incomplete sleep cycles, PRA curves reflected all disturbances and irregularities in the sleep structure. Spontaneous and provoked awakenings blunted the rise in PRA normally associated with NREM sleep, which indicates that disturbing sleep modifies the renin release from the kidneys. These results suggest that a common mechanism within the central nervous system controls both PRA oscillations and the REM-NREM sleep alternation.