Local orchestration of distributed functional patterns supporting loss and restoration of consciousness in the primate brain.
Andrea I. Luppi, Lynn Uhrig, Jordy Tasserie, Camilo M Signorelli, Emmanuel A. Stamatakis, Alain Destexhe, Bechir Jarraya, Rodrigo Cofré
Nature Communications March 11, 2024 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46382-w (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Non-human primates |
| Interventions | propofol sevoflurane ketamine electrical stimulation of the central thalamus |
| Keywords | Consciousness Brain research Anesthesia Brain stimulation |
| Citations | 43 |
| Key findings | Distributed brain activity under anesthesia becomes increasingly constrained by brain structure, and this collapse of hierarchical cortical organization is reversed by electrical stimulation of the central thalamus. |
Abstract
A central challenge of neuroscience is to elucidate how brain function supports consciousness. Here, we combine the specificity of focal deep brain stimulation with fMRI coverage of the entire cortex, in awake and anaesthetised non-human primates. During propofol, sevoflurane, or ketamine anaesthesia, and subsequent restoration of responsiveness by electrical stimulation of the central thalamus, we investigate how loss of consciousness impacts distributed patterns of structure-function organisation across scales. We report that distributed brain activity under anaesthesia is increasingly constrained by brain structure across scales, coinciding with anaesthetic-induced collapse of multiple dimensions of hierarchical cortical organisation. These distributed signatures are observed across different anaesthetics, and they are reversed by electrical stimulation of the central thalamus, coinciding with recovery of behavioural markers of arousal. No such effects were observed upon stimulating the ventral lateral thalamus, demonstrating specificity. Overall, we identify consistent distributed signatures of consciousness that are orchestrated by specific thalamic nuclei.