Self and the Brain. The Immune Metaphor

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Evolutionary Biology
• Immunology
• Quantum Physics

Background:

• The relationship between brain activity and conscious experience is a fundamental neuroscience question.
• Self-consciousness is typically viewed as an emergent property of brain networks.
• A quantum physics theory suggests consciousness momentum at the single neuron level.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a brain self theory from an evolutionary biological perspective.
• To propose an analogy between the immune self and the brain's self-recognition mechanisms.
• To explore the implications of this theory for understanding autophrenic diseases, specifically schizophrenia.

Main Methods:

• An evolutionary biological analogy comparing the immune self (T lymphocytes) to the brain's neuronal selection process.
• Hypothesizing perinatal reactivity to self inputs guiding neocortical neuron selection within the subplate.
• Reviewing experimental and clinical evidence supporting the proposed brain self model.

Main Results:

• The proposed model suggests that self-driven neuronal selection enables the brain to effectively discriminate external inputs.
• This process is crucial for avoiding harmful 'autoreactive' responses, akin to autoimmune diseases.
• Evidence supporting this self tenet is provided, laying the groundwork for understanding disorders of the self.

Conclusions:

• The study outlines the postulates of 'autophrenic diseases' based on the proposed brain self theory.
• Schizophrenia is presented as a prototypical disease characterized by a rupture of the self.
• The model's implications and potential avenues for experimental verification are discussed.