Conscious processing of narrative stimuli synchronizes heart rate between individuals
Pauline Pérez,
Jens Madsen,
Leah Banellis,
Bașak Türker,
Federico Raimondo,
Vincent Perlbarg,
Melanie Valente,
Marie-Cécile Niérat,
Louis Puybasset,
Lionel Naccache,
Thomas Similowski,
Damian Cruse,
Lucas C. Parra,
Jacobo D. Sitt
Affiliations
Pauline Pérez
Paris Brain Institute, ICM, 75013 Paris, France; Inserm U 1127, 75013 Paris, France; CNRS UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France
Jens Madsen
Department of Biomedical Engineering, City College of New York, New York, NY, USA
Leah Banellis
School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, England; Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, England
Bașak Türker
Paris Brain Institute, ICM, 75013 Paris, France; Inserm U 1127, 75013 Paris, France; CNRS UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France
Federico Raimondo
Paris Brain Institute, ICM, 75013 Paris, France
Vincent Perlbarg
Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Core Facility, iCONICS, IHU-A-ICM, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière, Paris, France
Melanie Valente
Paris Brain Institute, ICM, 75013 Paris, France
Marie-Cécile Niérat
Sorbonne Université, INSERM, UMRS1158 Neurophysiologie Respiratoire Expérimentale et Clinique, 75005 Paris, France
Louis Puybasset
Department of Anesthesia and Intensive Care, Pitié-Salpetrière Hospital, Paris, France; Sorbonne Université, CNRS, INSERM, Laboratoire d’Imagerie Biomédicale, LIB, Paris, France
Lionel Naccache
Paris Brain Institute, ICM, 75013 Paris, France; Inserm U 1127, 75013 Paris, France; CNRS UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France; Department of Neurophysiology, Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpetrière, AP-HP, 75013 Paris, France; Faculté de Médecine Pitié-Salpêtrière, Sorbonne Université, 75013 Paris, France
Thomas Similowski
Sorbonne Université, INSERM, UMRS1158 Neurophysiologie Respiratoire Expérimentale et Clinique, 75005 Paris, France; AP-HP, Groupe Hospitalier Universitaire APHP-Sorbonne Université, site Pitié-Salpêtrière, Service de Pneumologie, Médecine Intensive et Réanimation (Département R3S), 75013 Paris, France
Damian Cruse
School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, England; Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, England
Lucas C. Parra
Department of Biomedical Engineering, City College of New York, New York, NY, USA; Corresponding author
Jacobo D. Sitt
Paris Brain Institute, ICM, 75013 Paris, France; Inserm U 1127, 75013 Paris, France; CNRS UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France; Corresponding author
Summary: Heart rate has natural fluctuations that are typically ascribed to autonomic function. Recent evidence suggests that conscious processing can affect the timing of the heartbeat. We hypothesized that heart rate is modulated by conscious processing and therefore dependent on attentional focus. To test this, we leverage the observation that neural processes synchronize between subjects by presenting an identical narrative stimulus. As predicted, we find significant inter-subject correlation of heart rate (ISC-HR) when subjects are presented with an auditory or audiovisual narrative. Consistent with our hypothesis, we find that ISC-HR is reduced when subjects are distracted from the narrative, and higher ISC-HR predicts better recall of the narrative. Finally, patients with disorders of consciousness have lower ISC-HR, as compared to healthy individuals. We conclude that heart rate fluctuations are partially driven by conscious processing, depend on attentional state, and may represent a simple metric to assess conscious state in unresponsive patients.
