Neural Correlates of Psychedelic, Sleep, and Sedated States Support Global Theories of Consciousness.
bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology October 23, 2024 Rui Dai, Hyunwoo Jang, Anthony G Hudetz et al. 1 citation preprint
Consciousness appears to depend on global interactions across multiple brain regions rather than on localized neural activity. Using fMRI data across psychedelic, sleep, and deep sedation states, the study found a mirror-image pattern: psychedelic states increased global functional connectivity and decreased local neural synchrony, while non-REM sleep and deep sedation showed the opposite pattern. This pattern was observed in anterior-posterior and posterior-posterior brain regions but not within the anterior brain alone. Anterior transmodal regions were key for anterior-posterior connectivity, while posterior transmodal and unimodal regions were critical for posterior-posterior connectivity. The findings support global theories of consciousness and bridge the Global Neuronal Workspace hypothesis and Integrated Information Theory by showing shared neural mechanisms.