Mesocircuit mechanisms underlying recovery of consciousness following severe brain injuries: Model and predictions

Abstract

This chapter reviews the mesocircuit hypothesis for the recovery of consciousness after severe brain injuries. Building up from a single premise that multifocal brain injuries typically produce widespread neuronal death and dysfunction, the mesocircuit model proposes a lawful circuit-level mechanism on the basis of known anatomical and physiological specializations of the corticothalamic system. The hypothesis is deeply generative of testable predictions at the mesocircuit and cellular level across multiple cerebral structures. Recent tests of some of these predictions are discussed as well as next steps in evaluating theoretical implications of the mesocircuit model.