Psychedelics and anesthetics create mirror image patterns in the brain
For something so familiar to human experience, consciousness is still a mystery. Each day, people cycle through wakefulness and sleep, from a higher level of consciousness to a lower one. What's more, some people alter their conscious experience with drugs such as psychedelics or have unconsciousness induced by anesthesia.
Scientists have discovered that psychedelic drugs and anesthetics generate mirror-image patterns in brain organization, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of Michigan. The findings, published in the journal Cell Reports, reveal that psychedelics, such as LSD and psilocybin, and anesthetics, like nitrous oxide and propofol, create opposite effects on brain connectivity, integration, and complexity.
Psychedelic drugs increase functional connectivity, topological integration, and interaction complexity, while sleep and anesthesia decrease these measures. The researchers used functional MRI data from participants who were under the influence of psychedelics, asleep, or sedated with propofol, and found that the brain becomes more globally connected, efficient in communication, and dynamic during psychedelic states, while anesthetic states are the opposite.
The study's lead author, Rui Dai, Ph.D., and Zirui Huang, Ph.D., suggest that these mirror-image patterns may help distinguish altered conscious states and shed light on the neural mechanisms underlying consciousness.
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