Picture representation during REM dreams: a redox molecular hypothesis

Abstract

A novel molecular hypothesis about visual perception and imagery has recently been proposed (Bókkon, 2009; BioSystems). Namely, external electromagnetic visible photons are converted into electrical signals in the retina and are then conveyed to V1. Next, these retinotopic electrical signals (spike-related electrical signals along classical axonal-dendritic pathways) can be converted into synchronized bioluminescent biophoton signals (inside the neurons) by neurocellular radical reactions (redox processes) in retinotopically organized V1 mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase-rich visual areas. The bioluminescent photonic signals (inside the neurons) generated by neurocellular redox/radical reactions in synchronized V1 neurons make it possible to produce computational biophysical pictures during visual perception and imagery. Our hypothesis is in line with the functional roles of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species in living cells and states that this is not a random process, but rather a strict mechanism used in signaling pathways. Here, we suggest that intrinsic biophysical pictures can also emerge during REM dreams.