Skip to main content
Advertisement

Main menu

  • Home
  • Articles
    • Current Issue
    • Fast Forward
    • Latest Articles
    • Archive
  • Information
    • Instructions to Authors
    • Submit a Manuscript
    • FAQs
    • For Subscribers
    • Terms & Conditions of Use
    • Permissions
  • Editorial Board
  • Alerts
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
  • Virtual Issues
  • Feedback
  • Submit
  • Other Publications
    • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
    • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
    • Molecular Pharmacology
    • Pharmacological Reviews
    • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
    • ASPET

User menu

  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart

Search

  • Advanced search
Pharmacological Reviews
  • Other Publications
    • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
    • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
    • Molecular Pharmacology
    • Pharmacological Reviews
    • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
    • ASPET
  • My alerts
  • Log in
  • My Cart
Pharmacological Reviews

Advanced Search

  • Home
  • Articles
    • Current Issue
    • Fast Forward
    • Latest Articles
    • Archive
  • Information
    • Instructions to Authors
    • Submit a Manuscript
    • FAQs
    • For Subscribers
    • Terms & Conditions of Use
    • Permissions
  • Editorial Board
  • Alerts
    • Alerts
    • RSS Feeds
  • Virtual Issues
  • Feedback
  • Submit
  • Visit Pharm Rev on Facebook
  • Follow Pharm Rev on Twitter
  • Follow ASPET on LinkedIn
Review ArticleReview Article

Understanding the Neural Mechanisms of General Anesthesia from Interaction with Sleep–Wake State: A Decade of Discovery

Wei-Wei Bao, Shan Jiang, Wei-Min Qu, Wen-Xian Li, Chang-Hong Miao and Zhi-Li Huang
Lynette Daws, ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Pharmacological Reviews May 2023, 75 (3) 532-553; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1124/pharmrev.122.000717
Wei-Wei Bao
Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital; State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., C.H.M., Z.L.H.); Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., S.J., W.M.Q., Z.L.H.), and Department of Anesthesiology, Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital (W.X.L.), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Shan Jiang
Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital; State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., C.H.M., Z.L.H.); Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., S.J., W.M.Q., Z.L.H.), and Department of Anesthesiology, Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital (W.X.L.), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Wei-Min Qu
Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital; State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., C.H.M., Z.L.H.); Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., S.J., W.M.Q., Z.L.H.), and Department of Anesthesiology, Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital (W.X.L.), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Wen-Xian Li
Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital; State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., C.H.M., Z.L.H.); Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., S.J., W.M.Q., Z.L.H.), and Department of Anesthesiology, Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital (W.X.L.), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Chang-Hong Miao
Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital; State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., C.H.M., Z.L.H.); Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., S.J., W.M.Q., Z.L.H.), and Department of Anesthesiology, Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital (W.X.L.), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
Zhi-Li Huang
Department of Anesthesiology, Zhongshan Hospital; State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology and MOE Frontiers Center for Brain Science, Institutes of Brain Science, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., C.H.M., Z.L.H.); Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Shanghai Medical College (W.W.B., S.J., W.M.Q., Z.L.H.), and Department of Anesthesiology, Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital (W.X.L.), Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for Zhi-Li Huang
Lynette Daws
Roles: ASSOCIATE EDITOR
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF + SI
  • PDF
Loading

Abstract

The development of cutting-edge techniques to study specific brain regions and neural circuits that regulate sleep–wake brain states and general anesthesia (GA), has increased our understanding of these states that exhibit similar neurophysiologic traits. This review summarizes current knowledge focusing on cell subtypes and neural circuits that control wakefulness, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, non-REM sleep, and GA. We also review novel insights into their interactions and raise unresolved questions and challenges in this field. Comparisons of the overlapping neural substrates of sleep–wake and GA regulation will help us to understand sleep–wake transitions and how anesthetics cause reversible loss of consciousness.

Significance Statement General anesthesia (GA), sharing numerous neurophysiologic traits with the process of natural sleep, is administered to millions of surgical patients annually. In the past decade, studies exploring the neural mechanisms underlying sleep–wake and GA have advanced our understanding of their interactions and how anesthetics cause reversible loss of consciousness. Pharmacotherapies targeting the neural substrates associated with sleep–wake and GA regulations have significance for clinical practice in GA and sleep medicine.

Footnotes

    • Received July 7, 2022.
    • Accepted November 16, 2022.
  • This study was partly supported by the STI2030-Major Project [Grant 2021ZD0203400] (to Z.L.H.); the National Key Research and Development Program of China [Grant 2020YFC2005300] (to W.M.Q.); the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grants 82020108014 and 32070984] (to Z.L.H.), [Grants 82071491 and 31871072] (to W.M.Q.), and [Grant 82201417] (to W.W.B.); the Shanghai Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan Laboratory Animal Research Project [Grant 201409001800] (to Z.L.H.); and the Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Major Project [Grant 2018SHZDZX01] (to Z.L.H.),ZJ Lab, and Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Technology.

  • All authors declare no competing interests.

  • ↵1W.W.B. and S.J. contributed equally to this work.

  • dx.doi.org/10.1124/pharmrev.122.000717.

  • ↵Embedded ImageThis article has supplemental material available at pharmrev.aspetjournals.org.

  • Copyright © 2023 by The American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
View Full Text

PharmRev articles become freely available 12 months after publication, and remain freely available for 5 years. 

Non-open access articles that fall outside this five year window are available only to institutional subscribers and current ASPET members, or through the article purchase feature at the bottom of the page. 

 

  • Click here for information on institutional subscriptions.
  • Click here for information on individual ASPET membership.

 

Log in using your username and password

Forgot your user name or password?

Purchase access

You may purchase access to this article. This will require you to create an account if you don't already have one.
PreviousNext
Back to top

In this issue

Pharmacological Reviews: 75 (3)
Pharmacological Reviews
Vol. 75, Issue 3
1 May 2023
  • Table of Contents
  • Table of Contents (PDF)
  • About the Cover
  • Index by author
  • Editorial Board (PDF)
  • Front Matter (PDF)
Download PDF
Article Alerts
Sign In to Email Alerts with your Email Address
Email Article

Thank you for sharing this Pharmacological Reviews article.

NOTE: We request your email address only to inform the recipient that it was you who recommended this article, and that it is not junk mail. We do not retain these email addresses.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Understanding the Neural Mechanisms of General Anesthesia from Interaction with Sleep–Wake State: A Decade of Discovery
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from Pharmacological Reviews
(Your Name) thought you would be interested in this article in Pharmacological Reviews.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
Review ArticleReview Article

Neural Mechanisms of General Anesthesia

Wei-Wei Bao, Shan Jiang, Wei-Min Qu, Wen-Xian Li, Chang-Hong Miao and Zhi-Li Huang
Pharmacological Reviews May 1, 2023, 75 (3) 532-553; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1124/pharmrev.122.000717

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero

Share
Review ArticleReview Article

Neural Mechanisms of General Anesthesia

Wei-Wei Bao, Shan Jiang, Wei-Min Qu, Wen-Xian Li, Chang-Hong Miao and Zhi-Li Huang
Pharmacological Reviews May 1, 2023, 75 (3) 532-553; DOI: https://doi.org/10.1124/pharmrev.122.000717
Reddit logo Twitter logo Facebook logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One

Jump to section

  • Article
    • Abstract
    • I. Introduction
    • II. Wake–Sleep Circuitry
    • II. Inhaled Anesthetics
    • III. Intravenous Anesthetic Propofol
    • III. Intravenous Anesthetic Ketamine
    • IV. Anesthetic Adjunct Dexmedetomidine
    • V. Conclusion
    • Acknowledgments
    • Authorship Contributions
    • Footnotes
    • Abbreviations
    • References
  • Figures & Data
  • Info & Metrics
  • eLetters
  • PDF + SI
  • PDF

Related Articles

Cited By...

More in this TOC Section

  • PROKINETICIN RECEPTORS AS THERAPEUTIC TARGETS
  • ASO and siRNA drugs for systemic diseases of liver origin
  • β-Arrestins: Structure, Function, and Physiology
Show more Review article

Similar Articles

Advertisement
  • Home
  • Alerts
Facebook   Twitter   LinkedIn   RSS

Navigate

  • Current Issue
  • Latest Articles
  • Archive
  • Search for Articles
  • Feedback
  • ASPET

More Information

  • About Pharmacological Reviews
  • Editorial Board
  • Instructions to Authors
  • Submit a Manuscript
  • Customized Alerts
  • RSS Feeds
  • Subscriptions
  • Permissions
  • Terms & Conditions of Use

ASPET's Other Journals

  • Drug Metabolism and Disposition
  • Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
  • Molecular Pharmacology
  • Pharmacology Research & Perspectives
ISSN 1521-0081 (Online)

Copyright © 2023 by the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics