The Unique Neural Signature of Your Trip: Functional Connectome Fingerprints of Subjective Psilocybin Experience

Functional connectomes (FCs) become more idiosyncratic under the psychedelic psilocybin than under placebo, with idiosyncratic features concentrating in the default-mode network (DMN). An FC pattern predicting subjective psilocybin experience shows reduced within-DMN and DMN-limbic connectivity, alongside increased DMN-attentional system connectivity. These results bridge psilocybin's brain effects and behavior, demonstrating the value of brain-fingerprinting in pharmacological neuroimaging.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Abstract The emerging neuroscientific frontier of brain fingerprinting has recently established that human functional connectomes (FCs) exhibit fingerprint-like idiosyncratic features, which map onto heterogeneously distributed behavioural traits. Here, we harness brain-fingerprinting tools to extract FC features that predict subjective drug experience induced by the psychedelic psilocybin. Specifically, in neuroimaging data of healthy volunteers under the acute influence of psilocybin or a placebo, we show that, post psilocybin administration, FCs become more idiosyncratic due to greater inter-subject dissimilarity. Moreover, whereas in placebo subjects idiosyncratic features are primarily found in the frontoparietal network, in psilocybin subjects they concentrate in the default-mode network (DMN). Crucially, isolating the latter revealed an FC pattern that predicts subjective psilocybin experience and is characterised by reduced within-DMN and DMN-limbic connectivity, as well as increased connectivity between the DMN and attentional systems. Overall, these results contribute to bridging the gap between psilocybin-mediated effects on brain and behaviour, while demonstrating the value of a brain-fingerprinting approach to pharmacological neuroimaging. Author summary The trending field of brain fingerprinting focuses on characterising fingerprint-like idiosyncratic features of human functional connectomes (FCs), which have been shown to predict heterogeneously distributed behavioural traits. Here, we apply brain-fingerprinting methods to fMRI data from subjects who were administered the psychedelic psilocybin or a placebo. We find that, compared to the placebo condition, subjects under acute psilocybin effects exhibited more idiosyncratic FCs, with idiosyncratic features being largely concentrated in the default-mode network (DMN). Furthermore, we isolated an idiosyncratic FC pattern that predicted reports of subjective psilocybin experiences. This pattern was characterised by altered DMN connectivity, specifically by reduced within-DMN and DMN-limbic connectivity, and increased connectivity between the DMN and attentional systems. This work paves the way for exciting new research harnessing pharmacological brain fingerprinting.