Animal Hypnosis Research Articles

Hipnosis, magnetismo animal y monstruosidad en la literatura inglesa de finales del siglo XIX

En el presente trabajo exploraremos la imagen literaria del magnetismo animal y de la hipnosis a través del análisis de dos obras de ficción: las novelas El escarabajo (1897) de Richard Marsh y Drácula (1897) de Bram Stoker. Durante todo el siglo XIX, aunque principalmente a finales de este, fueron muchos los autores que recurrieron al magnetismo animal y la hipnosis, de forma ambiental o argumental, en sus creaciones de ficción, tanto fue así que Arthur Quiller-Couch, un importante crítico literario del siglo XIX, llegó a hablar del surgimiento de un nuevo subgénero literario que acuñó como “hypnotic fiction”. Partiendo de la idea de que en esta literatura de ficción mesmérica e hipnótica se pueden rastrear claramente unos estereotipos diferenciados de magnetizadores e hipnotizadores (unos más clásicos que otros) quienes hacen un uso diverso e incluso antagónico del magnetismo animal y de la hipnosis, mostraremos la relación de estos conocimientos con la figura del monstruo en las creaciones de Richard Marsh y Bram Stoker y como estos no pueden reducirse al estereotipo de magnetizador/hipnotizador villano, ya que los poderes mesméricos e hipnóticos funcionan aquí como agregados para conformar la monstruosidad del personaje.

Hypnotherapies in 20th-century Hungary: The extraordinary career of Ferenc Völgyesi

This article traces the history of hypnotherapies in Hungary by exploring and interpreting the work of Ferenc (András) Völgyesi, a controversial physician, psychiatrist and forensic expert who gained remarkable fame in and beyond Hungary. It explores his work and its reception in the context of the complex, changing trends in European psychology between the 1920s and 1950s, drawing on published sources in a range of languages, and the archives of the Hungarian State Security. It uncovers experiments in human and animal hypnosis; Völgyesi’s engagement with the Hungarian psychoanalytic community; and the cultural, scientific, and esoteric, networks from which theories and practices of hypnosis emerged. This reminds us also that the development of psychotherapy in Europe cannot be disentangled from the history of parapsychology and western esotericism. The article also examines allegations of ethical abuses of hypnosis, and the shortcomings of Völgyesi’s theoretical and practical claims. It argues that this case illustrates how the history of European psychotherapy in the 20th century cannot be fully understood without taking into account the enduring fascination with hypnotherapies into the postwar period – re-inscribed, in this case, through Pavlovian theories.

EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF THE VOLATILE PETROLEUM PRODUCTS EFFECT ON THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM

Objective: The goal of the research is studying the functional changes in the central nervous system against the background of intoxication with the minimum dosages of gasoline, benzene and acetone.Methods: The research was performed on 45 white mice divided into 3 groups; each group received corresponding hydrocarbon in the exposure chamber by inhaling. The functional state of the CNS was assessed with a complex of integral tests: By summation of subliminal pulses, the ability of animals to restore rectilinear movement after centrifugation, by the tone of skeletal muscles, and by the activity of muscle static work.Results: The durations of the narcosis phases in case of acute inhalation poisoning are different for all studied substances. The study of the functional changes in the CNS on the background of intoxication with low dosages has revealed that at the first exposure to benzene for activating the motor reaction the required number of electric pulses from the outside increases, the muscle tone increases, the ability to static work reduces, and the time for rectilinear movement and “animal hypnosis” increases. At the same time, on the background of intoxication during the fifth exposure, a decrease is observed in the number of electric pulses from the outside for activating the motor reaction, the muscle tone remains increased, the ability to static work is reduced, and the time of “animal hypnosis” is shorter than that during the first exposure.Conclusion: Against the background of the repeated use of small doses of benzene, the CNS adapts to the action of the toxic factor. With that, the ability of the CNS to sum the subliminal pulses, the cholinergic innervation of the skeletal muscles tone and other integral tests during the fifth exposure change less than during the first exposure.

El mito del zombi en la actualidad: desmembramiento sacrificial colectivo

For several decades the zombie myth maintained the same symbolic structure as literature and cinematography regarding the perverse use of animal magnetism and hypnosis, the genealogy from which it descends. In the last third of twentieth century the myth underwent a profound transformation, which nevertheless represented a continuation of its previous unconscious meaning. The analysis of the new archetypal elements that it included, closely related to a nuclear aspect of the spirit of twentieth century art, enables us to develop an interpretive approach to a mythical framework and its underlying psychological process currently running through the collective psyche: respectively, the initiation death and the solvent and disintegrative dynamic of the soul. It will be based in the analytical psychology theoretical framework and we will use the historical-comparative method.

Hipnose, imobilidade tônica e eletroencefalograma

OBJETIVO: Apresentar uma revisão sobre as características da atividade elétrica cerebral que acompanha a hipnose animal, estado induzido em laboratório em mamíferos por manipulações experimentais, bem como sobre as alterações encontradas no EEG durante o estado de hipnose, visando à discussão dos resultados encontrados na busca de evidências dos fundamentos filogenéticos que possam conduzir ao entendimento dos rudimentos neurais da hipnose humana. MÉTODO: Livros e bases eletrônicas de dados foram consultados. Critério de inclusão: artigos originais publicados entre 1966-2012. Critério de exclusão: artigos que se afastavam da visão eletroneurofisiológica da hipnose. RESULTADOS: Foram encontradas 662 referências, tendo sido selecionados os artigos e livros referenciados. Além desses artigos, foi incluído no estudo o artigo de Hoagland, publicado em 1928, que é um clássico na área de imobilidade tônica em vertebrados. CONCLUSÕES: O estado de hipnose humano resulta de processamentos em inúmeros circuitos paralelos distribuídos em uma complexa rede neuronal, envolvendo, dessa forma, uma ampla área do encéfalo. Na trajetória evolutiva, a grande ampliação dos recursos corticais pode ter tornado as respostas de imobilidade tônica passíveis de modulação consciente, respostas essas ainda presentes nos humanos e que se manifestam involuntariamente em situações de grande ameaça. Vários estudos têm evidenciado mecanismos neurofisiológicos capazes de reforçar a visão da hipnose não só como um eficiente recurso para procedimentos médicos e odontológicos, funcionando como auxiliar na analgesia e sedação, mas também como excelente ferramenta psicoterapêutica.

Genealogía hipnótica del mito del zombi: <i>The Magic Island</i> (1929)

This is the first of series of articles that aims to study the history and psychological significance of the “myth of the zombie” through the analysis of its allegorical and symbolic elements, based on a myth’s conceptualization extracted from the notions of Jung’s analytical psychology and Eliade’s history of religions. Here, we’ll look deeply into the symbolic genealogy that comes before and it’s inserted in zombie conception in Seabrook’s The magic island (first text where zombie appears as living dead) through a comparative analysis with the somnambulist in literature and filmography of “the dark side of animal magnetism and hypnosis” and its connection with the automaton.

Changes in the High-Frequency Activity of Rabbit Brain Biopotentials in the State of “Animal Hypnosis”

Spectral EEG analysis studies showed that in the state of “animal hypnosis,” the known increase in the power of biopotentials in the delta frequency range (0.3–3 Hz) and decrease in the theta range (4–8 Hz) were accompanied by an increase in the sigma range (12–17 Hz) by a factor of 2–4 and a decrease in the gamma range by a factor of 1.5–2, particularly in the band 40–70 Hz. These changes were more marked in the anterior areas of the cerebral cortex. The effects of the hypnotic state on pharmacologically (ketamine) induced increases in gamma activity of cortical origin were studied. Administration of subanesthetic doses of ketamine to rabbits induced motor arousal, while brain electrical activity showed longlasting (up to 2 h) increases in gamma activity. Creation of the hypnotic state on the background of ketamine produced a virtually instantaneous rearrangement of the power spectrum, which sharp increases in values in the slow-wave frequency range and a decrease in gamma activity, which returned to the baseline level. Thus, creation of the hypnotic state eliminated the specific ketamine-induced rearrangements of biopotentials, suggesting that animal hypnosis has stabilizing and to some extent protective effects in behavioral states accompanied by hyperlocomotion and stress.

Corticosterone microinjected into nucleus pontis oralis increases tonic immobility in rats

Tonic immobility (TI) is also known as “immobility response”, “immobility reflex”, “animal hypnosis”, etc. It is an innate antipredatory behavior characterized by an absence of movement, varying degrees of muscular activity, and a relative unresponsiveness to external stimuli. Experimentally, TI is commonly produced by manually forcing an animal into an inverted position and restraining it in that position until the animal becomes immobile. Part of the neural mechanism(s) of TI involves the medullo-pontine reticular formation, with influence from other components of the brain, notably the limbic system. It has been observed that TI is more prolonged in stressed animals, and systemic injection of corticosterone (CORT) also potentiates this behavior. At present, the anatomical brain regions involved in the CORT modulation of TI are unknown. Thus, our study was made to determine if some pontine areas could be targets for the modulation of TI by CORT. A unilateral nucleus pontis oralis (PnO) microinjection of 1μL of CORT (0.05μg/1μL) in rats resulted in clear behavioral responses. The animals had an increased duration of TI caused by clamping the neck (in this induction, besides of body inversion and restraint, there is also clamping the neck), with an enhancement in open-field motor activity, which were prevented by pretreatment injection into PnO with 1μL of the mineralocorticoid-receptor antagonist spironolactone (0.5μg/1μL) or 1μL of the glucocorticoid-receptor antagonist mifepristone (0.5μg/1μL). In contrast, these behavioral changes were not seen when CORT (0.05μg/1μL) was microinjected into medial lemniscus area or paramedian raphe. Our data support the idea that, in stressful situations, glucocorticoids released from adrenals of the prey reach the PnO to produce a hyper arousal state, which in turn can prolong the duration of TI.

Interaction of Stationary Excitation Foci in the Rabbit Brain

Influence of "animal hypnosis" on the motor polarization dominanta created by direct anodic current applied on the left sensorimotor cortex of the rabbit ("left" dominanta) was studied in chronic experiments. Animal behavior and electrophysiological characteristics were recorded. It was impossible to elicit the "animal hypnosis" during the optimum of the "left" dominanta. The state of "animal hypnosis" could be easily elicited against the background of the latent focus of the "left" dominanta on the next day after its formation. The "animal hypnosis" restored the "left" dominanta after its extinction. It was accompanied by formation of a new pattern of the cortical EEG coherence in the delta range, which was different from the patterns characteristic of each kind of dominanta. After the "animal hypnosis" session, the formation of the "left" dominanta produced two kinds of nonstable foci. During testing, the "left" dominanta reached its optimum and then inhibited the tonic activity of the right forelimb characteristic of the "animal hypnosis". The interaction of the "animal hypnosis" and the dominant foci in the left and right sensorimotor cortex were different.

Effects of lipopolysaccharide and interleukin-6 on cataleptic immobility and locomotor activity in mice

Catalepsy (animal hypnosis, tonic immobility) is a type of passive defensive behavior. Its exaggerated form is a syndrome of some psychopathological disorders. Numerous neurotransmitters have impact on the regulation of catalepsy. In this paper we demonstrated the involvement of interleukin-6 (IL-6) in the mechanism of cataleptic immobility. Effects of exogenous IL-6 treatment (7.5 and 10μg/kg, i.p) or stimulation of endogenous IL-6 secretion with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) administration (50, 100 and 200μg/kg, i.p.) on catalepsy and locomotor activity were studied in adult C57BL/6 male mice. IL-6 induced catalepsy in 70% (7.5μg/kg) or 72.7% (10μg/kg) of animals with no effect on locomotor activity. LPS administration reduced distance travelled and number of rears in the open field at any dose used, however, only high doses (100 or 200μg/kg) of the toxin induced catalepsy in 50% of mice. This result indicates that IL-6 is involved in the regulation of catalepsy, this effect is specific and does not arise from inhibition of locomotor activity. The study provides a new evidence on participation of IL-6 in mechanisms of abnormal behavior.

Correlations between Neuron Activity in the Sensorimotor Cortex of the Right and Left Hemispheres in Rabbits during a Defensive Dominant and “Animal Hypnosis”

A latent focus of excitation with a rhythmic nature (a defensive dominant focus) was created in the CNS of rabbits. The focus was formed by threshold electrocutaneous stimulation of the left forelimb using series of impulses consisting of 15-20 stimuli with interstimulus intervals of 2 sec. The linked activity of cells in the sensorimotor cortex of the right and left hemispheres was analyzed. When cross-correlation histograms of the spike activity of sensorimotor cortex neurons in the left hemisphere were constructed and analyzed in relation to spikes of high and intermediate amplitude recorded in the right hemisphere, the linked activity of 15% and 23% of neuron pairs, respectively, showed predominance of a rhythm equal or close to the stimulation rhythm used to form the dominant focus. When the appearance times of spikes from neurons in the sensorimotor cortex of the right hemisphere were analyzed in relation to spikes of high and intermediate amplitude recorded in the cortex of the left hemisphere, predominance of 2-sec rhythms was seen in the linked activity of only 3% and 10% of neuron pairs, respectively. After induction of "animal hypnosis," differences between the hemispheres in relation to this measure leveled out.

Dynamics of Changes in Electrical Activity in the Rabbit Cerebral Cortex during Sequential Sessions of “Animal Hypnosis”

The dynamics of changes in individual electrical activity rhythms in the premotor, sensorimotor, and temporal-parietal areas of the cortex in both hemispheres were studied in chronic experiments in rabbits during sequential sessions of "animal hypnosis." These experiments showed that during the first session of "animal hypnosis," significant changes in electrical activity occurred only in the premotor area of the cortex of the right hemisphere, where there were increases in spectral power in the delta-1 and delta-2 ranges and decreases in spectral power in other ranges of electrical activity. Subsequent sessions of "animal hypnosis" formed increasing changes in electrical activity, which were particularly marked in cortical areas in the right hemisphere. Significant changes in spectral power in the delta and theta ranges of electrical activity in cortical areas did not arise at the beginning of the hypnotic state, but after 4-6 min. During the third session of "animal hypnosis," the course of electrical activity in the alpha and beta rhythms in the premotor and sensorimotor areas of the cortex became wave-like in nature.

Linked Activity of Neurons in the Sensorimotor Cortex of the Rabbit in the State of a Defensive Dominant and “Animal Hypnosis”

A cryptic focus of excitation (a dominant focus) was created in the brains of rabbits by threshold stimulation of the left limb with a current at a frequency of 0.5 Hz. After creation of a focus, there were equal probabilities of detecting pairs of neurons whose linked activity was dominated by a 2-sec rhythm in the sensorimotor cortex of both the right and left hemispheres (29.3% and 32.4%, respectively). When animals were placed in "animal hypnosis," the total proportion of neuron pairs whose activity was dominated by the rhythm created by establishment of the dominant decreased significantly only in the right hemisphere (21%). After exiting the state of animal hypnosis, the proportion of neurons in the cortex of the right hemisphere whose activity was dominated by the 2-sec rhythm increased significantly if the neurons in the pair were close-lying but decreased significantly if the neurons in the pair were mutually distant. No such changes after hypnotization were seen in the cortex of the left hemisphere. In both the right and left hemispheres, dominance of the 2-sec rhythm in the activity of pairs of neurons was seen significantly more frequently when cross-correlation histograms were constructed by analyzing cells in relation to the spike activity of neurons generating spikes of the lowest (right hemisphere) or lowest and intermediate (left hemisphere) amplitude on neurograms of multineuron activity.

Effects of “animal hypnosis” on a rhythmic defensive dominant

A defensive dominant was created in rabbits using rhythmic electrocutaneous stimulation of the left forelimb at a frequency of 0.5 Hz. After stimulation ended, the latent excitation state was tested using sound stimuli. Animals responded either with increases in non-rhythmic paw muscle activity or with rhythmic twitching of the paw at a frequency close to that of the electrocutaneous stimulation. After hypnotization, the incidence of rhythmic responses to the stimulation testing the dominant focus increased, while the incidence of non-rhythmic responses decreased.

Animal Magnetism and Curriculum History

This article elaborates the impact that crises of authority provoked by animal magnetism, mesmerism, and hypnosis in the 19th century had for field formation in American education. Four layers of analysis elucidate how curriculum history’s repetitive focus on public school policy and classroom practice became possible. First, the article surveys external conditions of possibility for the enactment of compulsory public schooling. Second, “internal” conditions of possibility for the formation of educational objects (e.g., types of children) are documented via the processes of différance that were generated from within the experiences of confinement. Third, the article maps how these were interpenetrated by animal magnetic debates that were lustered and planished in education’s emerging field, including impact upon behavior management practices, the contouring of expertise and authority, the role of Will in intelligence testing and child development theories, and the redefinition of public and private. Last, the article examines implications for curriculum history, whether policy- or practice-oriented, especially around the question of influence, the theorization of child mind, and philosophies of Being.

Correlated activity of sensorimotor cortex neurons in the left and right hemispheres of the rabbit brain in immobilization catatonia

Spike sequences extracted from multineuron activity from neurons in the sensorimotor cortex, and recorded simultaneously in the left and right hemispheres of the brains of rabbits in the state of immobilization catatonia ("animal hypnosis") and on recovery of animals from this state were analyzed. Cross-correlation analysis of spike flows revealed a temporal relationship between the appearance of neuron spikes in the left and right hemispheres; these were regarded as the mutual influences of these neurons on each other. The intensity of the influences of left hemisphere neurons on cells in the right brain was shown to change significantly in relation to baseline measures at all stages of the experiment and at all of the time points studied. The intensity of the influences of neurons in the right hemisphere on cells in the left hemisphere changed significantly only after animals recovered from the state of immobilization and over much more restricted time periods.

Serotoninergic activation of the basolateral amygdala and modulation of tonic immobility in guinea pig

Tonic immobility (TI), also known as death feigning or animal hypnosis, is a reversible state of motor inhibition that is not only triggered by postural inversion and/or movement restraining maneuvers but also by repetitive stimulation and pressure on body parts. Evidence has demonstrated that the basolateral nucleus of the amygdala (BLA) is particularly associated with defensive behavior that involves the emotional states of fear and anxiety. In addition, some reports have demonstrated that serotonin (5-HT) released in the amygdala is increased during states of stress and anxiety, principally in the BLA. In the present study, we investigated the effects of serotonergic activation of the BLA on the duration of TI. The results showed that the microinjection of 5-HT (3.0 μg) into the BLA decreased the duration of TI. Similarly, the administration of a 5-HT 1A agonist (0.1 μg of 8-hydroxy-dipropylaminotretalin) or 5-HT 2 agonist (0.1 μg of α-methyl-5-HT) into the BLA reduced the TI duration. The effect of 5-HT 2 agonist was reversed by pretreatment with a dose that had no effect per se (0.01 μg) of ketanserin (5-HT 2 receptor antagonists) into the BLA. Moreover, the activation of 5-HT 1A and 5-HT 2 receptors in the BLA did not alter the spontaneous motor activity in the open field test. The results of the present study indicate that the serotonergic system of the BLA possibly produces a reduction in fear and/or anxiety that reduces the TI duration in guinea pigs, but this is not due to increased spontaneous motor activity induced by serotonergic activation, which might affect TI duration non-specifically.

Cardiac activity of freshwater crayfish at wakefulness, rest, and “animal hypnosis”

In laboratory experiments, simultaneous continuous recording of the circadian cycle of behavioral reactions and cardiac activity of freshwater crayfish Astacus astacus and Procambarus clarkii was carried out. A non-invasive fiber-optic method of recording of the heart rate (HR) was used. The obtained data were analyzed by the method of variational pulsometry (VP). It was revealed that certain values of HR and characteristics of VP corresponded to the physiological states of active wakefulness and rest. It was found that during long immobilization of crayfish it is possible to identify the states of operative rest and sleep by the animal behavioral reactions and parameters of cardiac activity. Crayfish were studied in the state of artificially evoked immobilization (“animal hypnosis”). During this state, a high HR level, an increase of indexes of tension and autonomic equilibrium, and changes of other VP characteristics were observed. It is suggested that the different level of cardiac activity in different physiological states of crayfish (active wakefulness, operative rest, sleep, and “animal hypnosis”) is regulated by nervous influences analogous to sympathetic and parasympathetic influences in vertebrates. It was concluded that freshwater crayfish as a representative of the highly organized invertebrates can serve an effective model for studying mechanisms of sleep-like states and “animal hypnosis” in animals.

Structure of Dependent Relationships Between Neurons in the Sensorimotor Cortex of the Left and Right Hemispheres in Rabbits in Immobilization Catatonia

Dependence in the activity of sensorimotor cortex neurons recorded simultaneously in the left and right hemispheres was detected in rabbits in baseline conditions, during the state of immobilization ("animal hypnosis"), and recovery of animals from this state. In baseline conditions, the total percentage of dependent relationships between close-lying (within 50 microm) neurons in the left hemisphere was significantly smaller than in the right hemisphere and did not change either in the state of immobilization or on recovery from it. The total percentage of dependent relationships between close-lying neurons in the right hemisphere decreased significantly during immobilization and returned to baseline levels on recovery from this state. The percentage of dependent relationships between distant (500 microm) neurons in immobilization, conversely, showed no change in the cortex of the right hemisphere, though it changed significantly in the cortex of the left hemisphere, returning to baseline values when the rabbits recovered from this state. Further analysis showed that this cortical interhemisphere asymmetry was based on the asymmetrical activity of individual neurons and small neuronal populations. Thus, changes in the structure of dependent relationships between neurons in microareas of the cortex of the left and macroareas of the cortex of the right hemisphere could be in different directions, while changes in microareas of the right hemisphere and macroareas of the left hemisphere were synergistic. Thus, asymmetry was detected at different levels of neuronal combinations (neuron pairs, micro- and macrogroups of neurons), which suggests mosaicism in neuron structure, which ultimately leads to overall functional asymmetry in "animal hypnosis." Some changes in the structure of dependent relationships between sensorimotor cortex neurons arising in "animal hypnosis" persisted or even became more marked after recovery of animals from this state.

The cholinergic stimulation of the central amygdala modifying the tonic immobility response and antinociception in guinea pigs depends on the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray

Tonic immobility (TI), also known as death feigning or animal hypnosis, is a reversible state of motor inhibition that is triggered by postural inversion and/or movement restraining maneuvers but also by repetitive stimulation and pressure on body parts. Our previous studies demonstrated that cholinergic stimulation of the central amygdala (CEA) decreases the duration of TI in guinea pigs. Some reports have demonstrated that electrical or chemical stimulation of the CEA promotes antinociception. Evidence suggests that the CEA performs part of its functions by means of a connection with the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (vlPAG). In the current study, we investigated the participation of a possible functional and anatomical CEA–vlPAG connection in guinea pigs in the regulation of the TI response and antinociception. Our results showed that the functional CEA–vlPAG connection is essential for the participation of the CEA in the modulation of TI and of antinociception. The reversible exclusion of the vlPAG by means of microinjection of 2% lidocaine blocked the inhibitory effect on TI duration and the antinociceptive effect, as determined by a decrease of the vocalization index (VI) obtained with the administration of carbachol (2.7 nmol/0.2 μl) into the CEA. On the other hand, the exclusion of the CEA by lidocaine did not block the antinociception or the increase in TI induced by microinjection of CCh into the vlPAG. Finally, microinjection of the retrograde neurotracer Fast Blue into the CEA or into the vlPAG demonstrated the existence of a reciprocal anatomical connection between the CEA and vlPAG.