Connectome-harmonic decomposition of human brain activity reveals dynamical repertoire re-organization under LSD
OpenAlex – July 14, 2017
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
LSD dramatically expands the human brain's active repertoire of states, fundamentally reorganizing neural dynamics. Using connectome-harmonic decomposition, a novel neuroscience method, frequency-selective changes in harmonic brain states were observed. This suggests Psychedelics and Drug Studies reveal profound shifts in brain function, moving beyond traditional psychology. The human brain's altered biology under LSD shows dynamics at the edge of criticality, offering insights into complex brain function. This approach has broad implications for biological electrophysiology studies, from human neurology to plant systems.
Abstract
ABSTRACT Recent studies have started to elucidate the effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) on the human brain but the underlying dynamics are not yet fully understood. Here we used ‘connectome-harmonic decomposition’, a novel method to investigate the dynamical changes in brain states. We found that LSD alters the energy and the power of individual harmonic brain states in a frequency-selective manner. Remarkably, this leads to an expansion of the repertoire of active brain states, suggestive of a general re-organization of brain dynamics given the non-random increase in co-activation across frequencies. Interestingly, the frequency distribution of the active repertoire of brain states under LSD closely follows power-laws indicating a re-organization of the dynamics at the edge of criticality. Beyond the present findings, these methods open up for a better understanding of the complex brain dynamics in health and disease.