PLoS One
2026
Matilda Gibbons, Ethan G McBride, Raghuram Holenarasipura Venkatasubbaiah et al.
Identifying the neural correlates of consciousness (NCC) is widely regarded as imperative to our understanding of consciousness. Although several scientific theories of consciousness make predictions about the NCC, they often differ in their level of detail, making direct comparison through experimental findings difficult. Here, we report an adversarial collaboration protocol in which unbiased...
Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience
May 2, 2024
Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Yuri B Saalmann
Abstract Research into ascending sensory pathways and cortical networks has generated detailed models of perception. These same cortical regions are strongly connected to subcortical structures, such as the basal ganglia (BG), which have been conceptualized as playing key roles in reinforcement learning and action selection. However, because the BG amasses experiential evidence from higher and...
British Journal of Anaesthesia
February 1, 2024
Cameron P Casey, Sean Tanabe, Zahra Z Farahbakhsh et al.
Understanding the neural correlates of consciousness has important ramifications for the theoretical understanding of consciousness and for clinical anaesthesia. A major limitation of prior studies is the use of responsiveness as an index of consciousness. We identified a collection of measures derived from unresponsive subjects and more specifically their association with consciousness (any...
Cell Reports
August 29, 2023
Eli J Müller, Brandon R Munn, Michelle J. Redinbaugh et al.
The neurobiological mechanisms of arousal and anesthesia remain poorly understood. Recent evidence highlights the key role of interactions between the cerebral cortex and the diffusely projecting matrix thalamic nuclei. Here, we interrogate these processes in a whole-brain corticothalamic neural mass model endowed with targeted and diffusely projecting thalamocortical nuclei inferred from...
PLoS Computational Biology
July 1, 2022
Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Mohsen Afrasiabi, Jessica M. Phillips et al.
Anesthetic manipulations provide much-needed causal evidence for neural correlates of consciousness, but non-specific drug effects complicate their interpretation. Evidence suggests that thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) can either increase or decrease consciousness, depending on the stimulation target and parameters. The putative role of the central lateral thalamus (CL) in consciousness...
bioRxiv Preprint Server
July 27, 2021
Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Mohsen Afrasiabi, Jessica M. Phillips et al.
preprint
Anesthetic manipulations provide much-needed causal evidence for neural correlates of consciousness, but non-specific drug effects complicate their interpretation. Evidence suggests that thalamic deep brain stimulation (DBS) can either increase or decrease consciousness, depending on the stimulation target and parameters. The putative role of the central lateral thalamus (CL) in consciousness...
Cell Systems
March 12, 2021
Mohsen Afrasiabi, Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Jessica M. Phillips et al.
SUMMARY: The neural substrates of consciousness remain elusive. Competing theories that attempt to explain consciousness disagree on the contribution of frontal versus posterior cortex and omit subcortical influences. This lack of understanding impedes the ability to monitor consciousness, which can lead to adverse clinical consequences. To test substrates and measures of consciousness, we...
bioRxiv Preprint Server
April 7, 2020
Mohsen Afrasiabi, Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Jessica M. Phillips et al.
preprint
Major theories of consciousness disagree on the key neural substrates. In Global Neuronal Workspace Theory and Higher-order Theories, consciousness depends on frontal cortex, whereas Integrated Information Theory and Recurrent Processing Theory highlight posterior contributions. Most theories omit subcortical influences. To test these theories, we performed simultaneous frontal, parietal,...
Neuron
January 22, 2020
Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Jessica M. Phillips, Niranjan A. Kambi et al.
SUMMARY: Functional MRI and electrophysiology studies suggest consciousness depends on large-scale thalamocortical and corticocortical interactions. However, it is unclear how neurons in different cortical layers and circuits contribute. We simultaneously recorded from central lateral thalamus (CL) and across layers of frontoparietal cortex in awake, sleeping and anesthetized macaques. We found...
bioRxiv Preprint Server
October 1, 2019
Michelle J. Redinbaugh, Jessica M. Phillips, Niranjan A. Kambi et al.
preprint
Consciousness is the capacity to experience one’s environment and internal states. The minimal mechanisms sufficient to produce this experience, the neural correlates of consciousness (NCC), are thought to involve thalamocortical and intracortical interactions, but the key operations and circuit paths are unclear. We simultaneously recorded neural activity in central thalamus and across layers...