A systems model of altered consciousness: integrating natural and drug-induced psychoses.
Franz X. Vollenweider, Mark A. Geyer
Brain Research Bulletin November 15, 2001 DOI: 10.1016/s0361-9230(01)00646-3 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Altered states of consciousness |
| Key findings | Argues that functional disturbances in cortico-striato-thalamic pathways, particularly disrupted thalamo-cortical gating of sensory and cognitive information, are critical to psychotic symptom formation. Ketamine and psilocybin are proposed to produce hallucinations partly through this common gating disruption, and cross-species prepulse inhibition studies are said to corroborate this view. |
Abstract
Increasing evidence from neuroimaging and behavioral studies suggests that functional disturbances within cortico-striato-thalamic pathways are critical to psychotic symptom formation in drug-induced and possibly also naturally occurring psychoses. Recent basic and clinical research with psychotomimetic drugs, such as the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptor antagonist, ketamine, and the serotonin-2A (5-HT(2A)) receptor agonist, psilocybin, suggest that the hallucinogenic effects of these drugs arise, at least in part, from their common capacity to disrupt thalamo-cortical gating of external and internal information to the cortex. Deficient gating of sensory and cognitive information is thought to result in an overloading inundation of information and subsequent cognitive fragmentation and psychosis. Cross-species studies of homologues gating functions, such as prepulse inhibition of the startle reflex, in animal and human models of psychosis corroborate this view and provide a translational testing mechanism for the exploration of novel pathophysiologic and therapeutic hypotheses relevant to psychotic disorders, such as the group of schizophrenias.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on altered states of consciousness, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Subjective Effects of Psychedelics Are Necessary for Their Enduring Therapeutic Effects. | 2020 | Review | |
| Psychobiology of Altered States of Consciousness. | 2005 | Review | |
| Intrinsic Brain Activity in Altered States of Consciousness | 2008 | Review | |
| Dynamic functional connectivity and brain metastability during altered states of consciousness | 2017 | Review | |
| A default mode of brain function in altered states of consciousness. | 2013 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 193
- Human hallucinogen research: guidelines for safety. Journal of Psychopharmacology July 1, 2008
- REBUS and the Anarchic Brain: Toward a Unified Model of the Brain Action of Psychedelics Pharmacological Reviews June 20, 2019
- Psychometric Evaluation of the Altered States of Consciousness Rating Scale (OAV) PLoS One August 31, 2010
- Acute, subacute and long-term subjective effects of psilocybin in healthy humans: a pooled analysis of experimental studies Journal of Psychopharmacology September 20, 2010
- The Pharmacology of Lysergic Acid Diethylamide: A Review CNS Neuroscience & Therapeutics November 11, 2008
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Cites 21
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- Reversal of Phencyclidine Effects by a Group II Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor Agonist in Rats Science August 28, 1998
- Amphetamine-type central nervous system stimulants release norepinephrine more potently than they release dopamine and serotonin Synapse 2000
and 16 more in the library