Integrated Information Decomposition Reveals a Synergistic Global Workspace Supporting Human Consciousness

แนวคิดหลัก

The human brain's information-processing architecture comprises a synergistic global workspace, with gateway regions that gather synergistic information from specialized modules and broadcaster regions that disseminate integrated information back to the brain. Loss of consciousness corresponds to a breakdown of information integration within this synergistic workspace.

บทคัดย่อ

The paper proposes a "synergy-Φ-redundancy" (SAPHIRE) architecture for the human brain's information-processing system. This architecture consists of three key stages:

Gathering of information from multiple distinct modules into a "synergistic workspace".
Integration of the gathered information within the workspace.
Global information broadcasting from the workspace to the rest of the brain.

The authors identify gateway regions that bring information into the workspace and broadcaster regions that disseminate integrated information back out. Remarkably, the gateway regions correspond to the brain's default mode network (DMN), while the broadcaster regions correspond to the executive control network (FPN), especially lateral prefrontal cortex.
The authors then investigate the role of this synergistic workspace in supporting human consciousness. Using integrated information decomposition, they find that loss of consciousness, whether due to general anesthesia or disorders of consciousness, corresponds to a breakdown of information integration specifically within the gateway regions of the DMN. These regions exhibit reduced integrated information, which is restored upon recovery of consciousness. In contrast, broadcaster regions in the FPN show the opposite pattern, with increased integrated information during loss of consciousness.
These results provide a new perspective on the functional roles of prominent resting-state networks in the human brain, and advance our understanding of how the brain supports consciousness through the synergistic integration of information.

สถิติ

"The mean estimated effect-site propofol concentration was 2.48 (1.82-3.14) µg mL-1, and the mean estimated plasma propofol concentration was 2.68 (1.92-3.44) µg mL-1."
"Mean total mass of propofol administered was 486.58 (373.30-599.86) mg."

คำพูด

"Humans and other vertebrates rely on a centralised nervous system to process information from the environment, obtained from a wide array of sensory sources. Information from different sensory sources must eventually be combined - and integrated - with the organism's memories and goals, in order to guide adaptive behaviour effectively."
"Prominent theories in cognitive and computational neuroscience have also proposed that global integration of information from diverse sources plays a fundamental role in relation to human consciousness."
"Crucially, our ability to make sense of any information-processing architecture is limited by our understanding of the information that is being processed."

ข้อมูลเชิงลึกที่สำคัญจาก

A Synergistic Workspace for Human Consciousness Revealed by Integrated Information Decomposition

by Luppi,A. I.,... ที่ www.biorxiv.org 11-26-2020

https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.11.25.398081v5

สอบถามเพิ่มเติม

How might the proposed SAPHIRE architecture be extended to account for the dynamics of information processing in the brain, beyond just the static functional connectivity?

The SAPHIRE architecture, which delineates a synergistic global workspace in the brain, can be extended to incorporate the dynamics of information processing by considering the temporal aspects of neural activity. Instead of focusing solely on static functional connectivity, dynamic functional connectivity analysis can be employed to capture how interactions between brain regions change over time. This approach would allow for the exploration of how the synergistic workspace adapts and reconfigures in response to different cognitive demands or states of consciousness. By examining the temporal evolution of information integration within the workspace, researchers can gain insights into the flexibility and adaptability of the brain's information-processing architecture.

What are the potential limitations of using resting-state fMRI data to characterize the global workspace, and how could task-based paradigms provide complementary insights?

While resting-state fMRI data offer valuable insights into the intrinsic functional organization of the brain, they have limitations in characterizing the global workspace. One limitation is that resting-state data may not fully capture the dynamic changes in information processing that occur during task performance. Additionally, resting-state scans lack the specificity of task-based paradigms, which can provide targeted information about how different cognitive processes engage the global workspace. Task-based paradigms allow researchers to manipulate cognitive demands and observe how the brain's information-processing architecture responds in real-time. By combining resting-state and task-based fMRI data, researchers can gain a more comprehensive understanding of the global workspace and its role in supporting various cognitive functions.

Could the SAPHIRE framework be applied to understand altered states of consciousness, such as those induced by psychedelic drugs, and how might this advance our understanding of the neural basis of consciousness?

The SAPHIRE framework could indeed be applied to investigate altered states of consciousness induced by psychedelic drugs. By examining how psychedelic substances affect the synergistic global workspace and alter information integration within the brain, researchers can gain insights into the neural mechanisms underlying these altered states. Psychedelics are known to induce profound changes in perception, cognition, and consciousness, making them a valuable tool for studying the neural basis of consciousness. Applying the SAPHIRE framework to psychedelic research could reveal how these substances modulate the synergistic interactions between brain regions and shed light on the neural correlates of consciousness alterations. This approach may advance our understanding of the dynamic nature of consciousness and provide new insights into the brain's capacity for generating subjective experiences.