Consciousness can be regained following stimulation of central lateral thalamus, study reveals

In a study involving macaques, researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison (WI, USA) have determined that the central lateral thalamus plays a role in consciousness. The authors of the paper, published in Neuron, suggest that stimulation of this region may allow treatment of disorders of consciousness. Previous studies have demonstrated that consciousness involves thalamocortical and corticocortical interactions, however, the specific cortical layers and neural circuits involved are yet to be identified. In this study, the brain activity of macaques was monitored while they were awake, sleeping and under anesthesia. “We decided to go beyond the classical approach of recording from...