The Neuropsychological and Evolutionary Implications of DMT

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« on: April 26, 2019, 03:12:43 pm »
Building Alien Worlds— The Neuropsychological and Evolutionary Implications of the Astonishing Psychoactive Effects of N,N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT)

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Abstract—

Arguably the most remarkable property of the human brain is its ability to construct the world that appears to consciousness. The brain is capable of building worlds during waking life, but also in the complete ab- sence of extrinsic sensory data, entirely from intrinsic thalamocortical activ- ity, as during dreaming. DMT, an extraordinary psychedelic, perturbs brain activity such that indescribably bizarre and apparently alien worlds are built. This property of DMT continues to defy explanation. However, by regarding this unique molecule as equivalent to serotonin, an endogenous neuro- modulator with a long-standing relationship with the brain, DMT’s effects may be explained. Serotonin has evolved to hold the brain’s thalamocortical system in a state in which the consensus world is built. When serotonin is replaced by DMT, the thalamocortical system shifts into an equivalent state, but one in which an apparently alien world is built. This suggests that DMT may be an ancestral neuromodulator, at one time secreted endogenously in psychedelic concentrations—a function apparently now lost. However, DMT maintains a number of unique pharmacological characteristics and a peculiar affinity with the human brain that supports this model. Thus, the modern practice of ingesting exogenous DMT may be the reconstitution of an ancestral function.

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Conscious awareness of a world appears to be a default state of the brain (Llinas & Pare 1991) and can be fully independent of incoming sensory data, as exemplified by dreaming. During REM sleep, the brain is perfectly capable of building completely realistic worlds, with all sensory modalities intact, despite having no access to the external world. In fact, even during waking, sensory stimuli contribute far less to the information used to build the world than might be expected (Edelman 2000). To understand what this means, we need to distinguish between two types of information in the brain. Information generated entirely within the brain, through the differentiated and integrated activity of the thalamocortical system, as discussed, is intrinsic information. Information that enters from outside, through the senses, is extrinsic information. It is a combination of these two types of information that the brain uses to build worlds. However, it is not simply a case of extrinsic sensory information adding to intrinsic information. Rather, patterns of sensory data amplify or “awaken” (Sporns 2011) existing intrinsic activity within the brain (Edelman 2000), and very little additional information is provided by sensory data (Tononi, Edelman, & Sporns 1998).  To put it another way, extrinsic sensory data is ‘matched’ to ongoing intrinsic activity, which it amplifies (Tononi, Sporns, & Edelman 1996). The intrinsic activity thus represents a repertoire of thalamocortical states that provide the context for any incoming sensory data. In fact, even in the complete absence of extrinsic sensory data, the intrinsic thalamocortical activity remains perfectly capable of building complete worlds. Of course, this is dreaming, which will be discussed in detail later. However, suffice to say that the principal difference between the waking consensus world and the dream world is the manner in which the former is modulated by extrinsic sensory data. Sensory information constrains conscious perception (Behrendt 2003), and the conscious awareness of a world is an intrinsic functional state of the brain that is modulated, but not created, by sensory input (Llinas, Ribary, Contreras, & Pedroarena 1998). Naturally, this begs the question as to why the intrinsic activity of the thalamocortical system tends to build the consensus world as a default and thus why extrinsic sensory data can be so effectively ‘matched’ to ongoing intrinsic activity. This suggests that extrinsic sensory data somehow shaped the thalamocortical system, i.e. that the brain used sensory data from the external world to learn to build a representation of it.

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It seems the brain builds worlds in exactly the same way during dreaming as it does during waking—and why wouldn’t it? Indeed, it is the only way the brain is able to build the worlds that appear to us. As pointed out earlier, the primary difference between waking and dreaming is the manner in which the waking world is modulated by extrinsic information. During waking, the formation of coherent oscillatory assemblies (i.e. thalamocortical states) is modulated by incoming sensory information. During dreaming, however, the individual is disconnected from the external environment (although the reason for this remains subject to debate, see Nir & Tononi 2010). The primary sensory areas of the cortex, which normally receive the incoming information before passing it on to higher cortical areas for further processing, also become inactive, as does the prefrontal cortex (Braun et al. 1998). The higher sensory areas of the cortex remain active in building the dream world, using the repertoire of intrinsic thalamocortical states developed during waking life. As the dynamic sequence of thalamocortical states is not constrained by incoming sensory data, however, the dream world can become bizarre, often impossible...Unfortunately, loss of normal critical function means that such ridiculousness is rarely recognized for what it is, unless you happen to be a lucid dreamer.

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The user typically rushes through a number of stages, before ‘breaking through’ into the characteristic alien worlds, which are the focus of this discussion. The accounts of Strassman’s volunteers and posters on Erowid. org who achieved this breakthrough, while varied, follow a number of recurring themes:

– Merry-go-rounds, fairgrounds, clowns/jesters, circuses; – Mischievous or playful elves/dwarves/imps;
– Insectoid and reptilian creatures, aliens;
– Futuristic hypertechnological buildings and cities;
– Complex machinery, hyper-advanced technology; – Being observed and/or experimented upon;
– Unknown places apparently on Earth.

A number of these features are common in ‘trip reports’ by users and, notably, unique to DMT. Users typically describe the DMT world as being more real than ordinary waking reality, even after the experience has ended. The lucidity of the experience is also striking—the lack of haziness or stoning allows the user to experience the effects as if in an ordinary waking state. Perhaps the most interesting of the recurrent themes, recounted by a significant proportion of users, is the experience of apparently hyperadvanced technological societies, with highly intelligent entities occupying futuristic cities and unearthly landscapes, manipulating complex machinery. Often the entities appear as mischievous or playful ‘elves’ that vie for the attention of the user...

...While elves, aliens, and insectoid entities appear regularly, they are by no means the only type of entity met in the DMT realm—angels, demons, monsters, chimeras, and animals, among others, also are reported (Shanon 2002), although some of these are more typical of ayahuasca. Sometimes, the entity isn’t identifiable by form, but manifests as an overwhelming presence that seems extraordinarily powerful (Strassman 2001).

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It would be a truly startling coincidence if DMT, the simplest tryptamine possible with little chemical functionality, the most widely distributed in nature and a natural human metabolite, just happens to be the only one capable of perturbing brain chemistry in such a finely tuned manner so as to produce apparent transport to alien worlds—all by chance and without any functional significance. And yet, this is exactly what we are faced with. It is difficult to reconcile these characteristics of DMT and its effects on consciousness with the assumption that DMT is merely an exogenous psychedelic drug and that any psychedelic effects are incidental and unrelated to its neural function. The nature of DMT and its effects might be better understood if, rather than as an exogenous drug, we begin to regard DMT as a neuromodulator with a long-standing relationship with the human brain.

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The thalamocortical states that are generated under DMT modulation are highly regular and highly specific—we know this because the worlds that appear are highly regular and highly specific to DMT. This is difficult to explain unless the brain contains more than one parallel ‘set’ of thalamocortical connectivities—one that developed under the modulation of serotonin (the ‘consensus set’) and one that developed under the modulation of DMT (the ‘alien set’). As such, the set that is expressed depends upon which neuromodulator is present; when serotonin is present, the consensus set is expressed and thus the consensus world appears. When DMT is present, the parallel ‘alien set’ is expressed and the alien world appears.

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The presence of any molecule that shifts the 5HT1A/5HT2A balance in favor of 5HT2A will result in a temporary breakdown of the ‘consensus set’ of thalamocortical connectivities and re- potentiate the thalamocortical system. This would include DMT, of course. Now, one can imagine that if extrinsic data from an alternate reality (the nature of which is unimportant here) was received when DMT was present, a new set of functional connectivities and activation patterns would begin to develop in exactly the same way that the ‘consensus set’ developed in the presence of serotonin (Figure 10). Further, exactly as with serotonin, this would need to happen repeatedly over an extended period of time (i.e. evolutionary time). Eventually, the thalamocortical system would develop the ability to build the ‘alien world’ in the same way it builds the ‘consensus world’ and thus possess two completely independent and parallel world-building modes. Which mode is expressed (i.e. whether the intrinsic thalamocortical activity constructs the consensus world or the alien world) and thus which world is seen, depends only upon which molecule is present—serotonin or DMT. Conceptually, at least, there would be no issue in the brain accommodating such parallel patterns of functional connectivity, as there is massive redundancy in neural connections, and the majority of neural connections are not functionally expressed at any one time (Edelman 1993)...

...This explanation resolves the question as to why DMT is unique in its ability to transport the user to these characteristic alien worlds. Its uniqueness is simply a consequence of the fact that it was the neuromodulator present when the thalamocortical connectivities of the alien world were developed. As such, the intrinsic activity that generates the appearance of the alien world can be expressed only in its presence, in exactly the same way that the consensus world appears in the presence of serotonin. This also provides a neurological mechanism for the suggestion that DMT ‘tunes’ the brain to receive sensory data from another reality. As discussed earlier, extrinsic sensory information adds very little new information to the brain, but is, rather, ‘matched’ to ongoing intrinsic activity, which it amplifies. Thus, sensory data from the DMT reality can only be received only when it matches ongoing intrinsic activity within the brain’s thalamocortical system. DMT, by replacing serotonin in the cortex, acts to shift the thalamocortical system into generating the appropriate intrinsic activity. A structurally unremarkable neuromodulator thus has the most remarkable effects. In fact, this model would predict that DMT is the only molecule capable of shifting the thalamocortical system into a state in which it constructs these characteristic alien worlds.

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So far, it has been suggested that the characteristics of DMT and its interaction with the brain are indicative of an endogenous molecule. Also, the psychedelic effects of DMT, fully immersive hallucinogenesis during which the consensus world is completely replaced with an apparently ‘alien’ world, might be explained if DMT was the major neuromodulator present when a parallel set of thalamocortical connectivities were developed. Both of these ideas would make sense if DMT is an ancestral neuromodulator, i.e. a neuromodulator that, at some point in our evolutionary past, was secreted in psychedelic concentrations by the brain. However, most of this functional capacity has subsequently been lost and the DMT that is currently present in the brain is possibly vestigial and might not have a significant modern function. So, in this ancestral period, the brain would have produced both serotonin and DMT, although probably not at the same time. The evolution of the consensus world–building capabilities of the brain took place under the modulation of serotonin, and was driven by the extrinsic sensory data from the consensus world. However, periodically, the brain was able to switch from primarily serotonin secretion to DMT secretion. This switch made the brain more sensitive and receptive to sensory data from the alternate reality, the ‘alien world’. This is because DMT’s 5HT1A and 5HT2A binding signature facilitated intrinsic thalamocortical activity that more closely matched the extrinsic sensory data from that particular reality. Over time, the intrinsic activity of the thalamocortical system and the alien reality became more and more closely ‘matched’ (i.e. the same mechanism by which the brain developed its consensus- world–building capabilities, except that DMT, rather than serotonin, was present).

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So, rather than the administration of an exogenous drug, smoking DMT could be regarded as reconstitution of an ancestral function. There is no reason to assume that the current repertoire of neuromodulators used by the human brain represents all that have ever been used. This may mean that those looking for a modern function for the small quantities of DMT currently secreted by the brain could be misguided—the function may well be in the past. Why this function was lost is unclear, as is the site of production/secretion in the brain. However, the idea that the human brain has actually regressed functionally in the last ~100,000 years is increasingly attracting attention (Gynn & Wright 2008). It is notable that Gynn and Wright make the case for a decline in pineal function, caused by changes in human’s ancestral diet, as an explanation for many modern human ‘left brain’ characteristics. Although they focus on the pineal gland’s role in the production of melatonin, a hormone associated with the diurnal wake–sleep cycle, it is striking that the pineal has been proposed as a possible site of endogenous DMT synthesis (Strassman, Wojtowicz, Luna, & Frecska 2008). Further, the pineal gland’s primarily nocturnal activity, secreting melatonin only during darkness, accords with the ancestral neuromodulator proposal. In fact, it is possible that there has been either a contraction of pineal function or a functional reassignment, its role shifting from DMT secretion to melatonin secretion—melatonin is itself a tryptamine (specifically, N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine). Luke, Zychowicz, Richterova, Tjurina, and Polonnikova (2012) have explored the idea that the cycle of DMT and melatonin secretion by the pineal might still be correlated and related to precognitive dreams. Although nobody has ever measured DMT levels in the brain directly, it seems likely that any DMT secretion is sub- psychedelic; otherwise, dreams ought to resemble the DMT flash. The pineal has, since ancient times, been regarded as a connection between the material and spiritual worlds (López-Muňoz, Molina, Rubio, & Alamo 2011). Perhaps there is an element of truth in these ostensibly primitive ideas. Certainly, this needs to be explored further and will no doubt be the subject of future
discussions.

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Seriously proposing that the brain is capable of receiving extrinsic data from an alternate alien reality is certainly bold. However, this discussion has deliberately avoided defining the nature of the external world and certainly shies away from defining the nature of any alien world. A true external alien reality, the nature of which is difficult to comprehend, isn’t necessarily a requisite within the ancestral neuromodulator model of DMT. Jung proposed that fragments of the psyche buried in the unconscious might carry on a completely separate existence from the conscious ego. These autonomous psychic complexes form a miniature, self-contained psyche and are, perhaps, even capable of a consciousness of their own (Jacobi 1959). If confronted, these complexes would appear entirely alien, with qualities of outside objects or persons. It is conceivable that, rather than receiving extrinsic data from an external alien reality, the parallel thalamocortical repertoire explored and developed during elevated DMT secretion in sleep may in fact represent the informational structure of these autonomous psychic complexes. Rather than learning to build a representation of an alien reality external to the brain, the brain in fact may have learned to build a conscious representation of deep unconscious structures. Laughlin (1996) argues that Jung’s constellation of human archetypes that constitute the collective consciousness are neurognostic structures (neural structures present from birth that produce the experience of the foetus and infant) that are both inheritable and subject to evolution. It ought to be clear that these neural structures are analogous to, if not identifiable with, the thalamocortical connectivities discussed at length in this paper. Clearly, if ancestral DMT secretion facilitated the development of a parallel set of inheritable neurognostic structures (thalamocortical connectivities), whether or not involving data input from a true external alien reality, these may form an autonomous fragment of the collective unconscious (a universal autonomous psychic complex) that can be expressed only when DMT levels in the brain are reconstituted (i.e. by smoking or injection of exogenous DMT). This would explain the phenomenal commonalities reported by DMT users, while also explaining why DMT alone seems capable of evoking these characteristic alien worlds. One can at least speculate that this universal psychic complex might evolve somewhat independently and, perhaps, far more rapidly than other parts of the collective unconscious and the conscious ego. Would this explain why the worlds and their occupants experienced under DMT often appear extremely intelligent and hypertechnological? This requires a far more detailed examination than can be presented here, but it is certainly an interesting idea.