An open fMRI resource for studying human brain function and covert consciousness under anesthesia.
Scientific Data January 9, 2026 Zirui Huang, Vijay Tarnal, Panagiotis Fotiadis et al.
An fMRI dataset from 26 healthy volunteers performing mental imagery tasks (tennis, navigation, hand squeeze) and a motor response task under graded propofol sedation captures brain activity across varying sedation levels, including instances of volitional mental imagery despite behavioral unresponsiveness. Prior analyses using this dataset have investigated the anterior insula's role in conscious access and asymmetric neural dynamics during loss and recovery of consciousness. The dataset provides a resource for exploring neural mechanisms of anesthesia and consciousness, featuring mental imagery tasks traditionally used only in disorders of consciousness.