Using Anesthesia to Reveal the Elements of Consciousness.
Ken Solt
Trends in Cognitive Sciences August 10, 2018 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2018.07.016 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Commentary Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Keywords | Prefrontal cortex Parietal lobe Acetylcholine Anesthesia Consciousness Norepinephrine Sevoflurane |
| Key points | Argues that cholinergic stimulation of the prefrontal cortex restores wake-like behaviors in anesthetized rodents, suggesting that cholinergic inputs to the prefrontal cortex play a fundamental role in modulating consciousness. |
Abstract
General anesthesia provides an invaluable experimental tool to probe the essential neural circuits that underlie consciousness. A new study reports that cholinergic stimulation of the prefrontal cortex restores wake-like behaviors in anesthetized rodents, suggesting that cholinergic inputs to the prefrontal cortex play a fundamental role in modulating consciousness.