Vigilance state dissociation induced by 5-MeO-DMT in mice

5-MeO-DMT induces a dissociated vigilance state in freely moving mice, with cortical slow-wave activity occurring during behaviorally awake periods. Using chronic electrophysiology plus pupillometry, researchers report prominent slow oscillations in the neocortex and strong pupil dilation while animals remained awake and moving. REM sleep is initially suppressed, then shows rebound over the following 48 hours. The study also links this altered brain-state profile to drug effects thought to involve dream-like mentation and plasticity-related mechanisms. Administering 5-MeO-DMT immediately after sleep deprivation attenuated the later rebound of slow-wave activity, supporting a bidirectional relationship between psychedelics and sleep architecture.