Distributed harmonic patterns of structure-function dependence orchestrate human consciousness.
Andrea I. Luppi, Jakub Vohryzek, Morten L. Kringelbach, Pedro A. M. Mediano, Michael M. Craig, Ram Adapa, Robin Carhart-Harris, Leor Roseman, Ioannis Pappas, Alexander R. D. Peattie, Anne E. Manktelow, Barbara J. Sahakian, Paola Finoia, Guy B. Williams, Judith Allanson, John D. Pickard, David K. Menon, Selen Atasoy, Emmanuel A. Stamatakis
Communications Biology January 28, 2023 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04474-1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Humans under anesthesia, brain-injured patients, and individuals given LSD or ketamine |
| Interventions | LSD ketamine |
| Topics | Addiction |
| Keywords | Consciousness Brain research Psychedelics Cognitive science |
| Citations | 98 |
| Key findings | Structure-function coupling increases across scales during loss of consciousness and decreases during psychedelic-induced altered states. |
Abstract
A central question in neuroscience is how consciousness arises from the dynamic interplay of brain structure and function. Here we decompose functional MRI signals from pathological and pharmacologically-induced perturbations of consciousness into distributed patterns of structure-function dependence across scales: the harmonic modes of the human structural connectome. We show that structure-function coupling is a generalisable indicator of consciousness that is under bi-directional neuromodulatory control. We find increased structure-function coupling across scales during loss of consciousness, whether due to anaesthesia or brain injury, capable of discriminating between behaviourally indistinguishable sub-categories of brain-injured patients, tracking the presence of covert consciousness. The opposite harmonic signature characterises the altered state induced by LSD or ketamine, reflecting psychedelic-induced decoupling of brain function from structure and correlating with physiological and subjective scores. Overall, connectome harmonic decomposition reveals how neuromodulation and the network architecture of the human connectome jointly shape consciousness and distributed functional activation across scales.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on addiction, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ayahuasca-Assisted Therapy for Addiction: Results from a Preliminary Observational Study in Canada Rural aboriginal population | 2013 | Observational study | |
| Dynamic coupling of whole-brain neuronal and neurotransmitter systems Healthy humans | 2020 | Observational study | |
| Psychedelics not linked to mental health problems or suicidal behavior: A population study Randomly selected United States adults | 2015 | Observational cohort | n = 135,095 |
| Breakdown of long-range temporal dependence in default mode and attention networks during deep sleep Human participants across the nonrapid eye movement sleep cycle | 2013 | Observational cohort | |
| Assessment of addiction severity among ritual users of ayahuasca Regular ayahuasca users (jungle-based and urban-based) and matched controls | 2010 | Observational cohort | n = 127 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 35
- In vivo mapping of pharmacologically induced functional reorganization onto the human brain’s neurotransmitter landscape Science Advances June 14, 2023
- A synergistic workspace for human consciousness revealed by Integrated Information Decomposition. Elife July 18, 2024
- Local orchestration of distributed functional patterns supporting loss and restoration of consciousness in the primate brain. Nature Communications March 11, 2024
- Different hierarchical reconfigurations in the brain by psilocybin and escitalopram for depression Nature Mental Health August 5, 2024
- The lack of temporal brain dynamics asymmetry as a signature of impaired consciousness states Interface Focus April 14, 2023
and 30 more in the library
Cites 40
- Detecting Awareness in the Vegetative State Science September 7, 2006
- Neural correlates of consciousness: progress and problems Nature Reviews Neuroscience April 20, 2016
- A Theoretically Based Index of Consciousness Independent of Sensory Processing and Behavior Science Translational Medicine August 14, 2013
- The entropic brain: a theory of conscious states informed by neuroimaging research with psychedelic drugs Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2014
- REBUS and the Anarchic Brain: Toward a Unified Model of the Brain Action of Psychedelics Pharmacological Reviews June 20, 2019
and 35 more in the library