- Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes/
- Publications/
- Spatiotemporal brain complexity quantifies consciousness outside of perturbation paradigms/
Spatiotemporal brain complexity quantifies consciousness outside of perturbation paradigms
eLife · 2025
Auteurs
Breyton M, Fousek J, Rabuffo G, Sorrentino P, Kusch L, Massimini M, Petkoski S, Jirsa V
Les auteurs en lien sont membres de l'INS.
Équipes
Résumé
Signatures of consciousness are found in spectral and temporal properties of neuronal activity. Among these, spatiotemporal complexity after a perturbation has recently emerged as a robust metric to infer levels of consciousness. Perturbation paradigms remain, however, difficult to perform routinely. To discover alternative paradigms and metrics, we systematically explore brain stimulation and resting-state activity in a whole-brain model. We find that perturbational complexity only occurs when the brain model operates within a specific dynamical regime, in which spontaneous activity produces a large degree of functional network reorganizations referred to as being fluid. The regime of high brain fluidity is characterized by a small battery of metrics drawn from dynamical systems theory and predicts the impact of consciousness-altering drugs (Xenon, Propofol, and Ketamine). We validate the predictions in a cohort of 15 subjects at various stages of consciousness and demonstrate their agreement with previously reported perturbational complexity, but in a more accessible paradigm. Beyond the facilitation in clinical use, the metrics highlight complexity properties of brain dynamics i
Signatures of consciousness are found in spectral and temporal properties of neuronal activity. Among these, spatiotemporal complexity after a perturbation has recently emerged as a robust metric to infer levels of consciousness. Perturbation paradigms remain, however, difficult to perform routinely. To discover alternative paradigms and metrics, we systematically explore brain stimulation and resting-state activity in a whole-brain model. We find that perturbational complexity only occurs when the brain model operates within a specific dynamical regime, in which spontaneous activity produces a large degree of functional network reorganizations referred to as being fluid. The regime of high brain fluidity is characterized by a small battery of metrics drawn from dynamical systems theory and predicts the impact of consciousness-altering drugs (Xenon, Propofol, and Ketamine). We validate the predictions in a cohort of 15 subjects at various stages of consciousness and demonstrate their agreement with previously reported perturbational complexity, but in a more accessible paradigm. Beyond the facilitation in clinical use, the metrics highlight complexity properties of brain dynamics i