How the brain causes losing and regaining consciousness
Official title: Mechanisms of Loss, Recovery and Disorders of Consciousness
Funded at University of Wisconsin-Madison · NIH-11323081 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work looks at brain signals from people having epilepsy surgery to find patterns that explain losing and regaining consciousness across sleep, anesthesia, and awake states.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Wisconsin-Madison NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Madison, United States) |
| Project start | February 15, 2014 |
| Project end | April 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $593,857 |
| NIH project number | 5R01GM109086-12 |
| Project ID | NIH-11323081 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adults undergoing intracranial monitoring for epilepsy surgery or patients treated at specialized centers who can safely have brain recordings during clinical care.
✕Less likely to help
People who are not having brain surgery, who cannot undergo invasive monitoring, or whose condition does not affect arousal/awareness are unlikely to benefit directly from participating.
What this research studies
If I take part, doctors will record electrical activity directly from my brain using electrodes placed as part of neurosurgical care. They will compare brain responses during wakefulness, drowsiness, dreaming, and under anesthesia, and may use brief sounds or gentle electrical stimulation while recording. Researchers will use computer analyses to look for signal patterns and connections between brain areas that match changes in awareness. The goal is to find reliable brain markers that show when someone is conscious or not, and how recovery happens over time.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help clinicians detect and monitor awareness more accurately and guide treatments for people with anesthesia complications, coma, or other disorders of consciousness.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work has found promising brain-signal markers during anesthesia and sleep, but applying and validating these markers for disorders of consciousness is still emerging.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Banks, Matthew I — University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Study coordinator: Banks, Matthew I
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.