LSD-induced changes in the functional connectivity of distinct thalamic nuclei

Oct 20, 2023NeuroImage

LSD-related changes in communication between different thalamus regions

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Abstract

LSD intake increased thalamocortical connectivity in specific nuclei among healthy volunteers.

LSD selectively enhanced the functional connectivity of the ventral complex, pulvinar, and non-specific thalamic nuclei.
Increased connectivity was observed between these thalamic nuclei and sensory cortices, including somatosensory and auditory networks.
The ventral and pulvinar nuclei showed heightened connectivity with areas of the associative cortex rich in serotonin type 2A receptors.
At a subcortical level, LSD increased connectivity among the thalamus's nuclei but decreased connectivity with the striatum.
These results may help explain how LSD affects brain circuits and related behaviors.

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The role of the thalamus in mediating the effects of lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) was recently proposed in a model of communication and corroborated by imaging studies. However, a detailed analysis of LSD effects on nuclei-resolved thalamocortical connectivity is still missing. Here, in a group of healthy volunteers, we evaluated whether LSD intake alters the thalamocortical coupling in a nucleus-specific manner. Structural and resting-state functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) data were acquired in a placebo-controlled study on subjects exposed to acute LSD administration. Structural MRI was used to parcel the thalamus into its constituent nuclei based on individual anatomy. Nucleus-specific changes of resting-state functional MRI (rs-fMRI) connectivity were mapped using a seed-based approach. LSD intake selectively increased the thalamocortical functional connectivity (FC) of the ventral complex, pulvinar, and non-specific nuclei. Functional coupling was increased between these nuclei and sensory cortices that include the somatosensory and auditory networks. The ventral and pulvinar nuclei also exhibited increased FC with parts of the associative cortex that are dense in serotonin type 2A receptors. These areas are hyperactive and hyper-connected upon LSD intake. At subcortical levels, LSD increased the functional coupling among the thalamus's ventral, pulvinar, and non-specific nuclei, but decreased the striatal-thalamic connectivity. These findings unravel some LSD effects on the modulation of subcortical-cortical circuits and associated behavioral outputs.

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LSD-induced changes in the functional connectivity of distinct thalamic nuclei

Abstract

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