Reentry (neural circuitry)

{{short description|Ongoing bidirectional signalling between two or more brain areas}}

Reentry is a neural structuring of the brain, which is characterized by the ongoing bidirectional exchange of signals along reciprocal axonal fibers linking two or more brain areas.{{Cite journal

| year = 2013

| last1 = Edelman

| first1 = Gerald M.

| title = Reentry: a key mechanism for integration of brain function

| journal = Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience

| volume = 7

| issue = 63

| page = 63

| last2 = Gally

| first2 = Joseph A.

| doi = 10.3389/fnint.2013.00063| pmid = 23986665

| pmc = 3753453

| doi-access = free

}}

It is hypothesized to allow for widely distributed groups of neurons to achieve integrated and synchronized firing,{{Cite journal

| pmid = 15142952

| year = 2004

| last1 = Seth

| first1 = A. K.

| title = Visual binding through reentrant connectivity and dynamic synchronization in a brain-based device

| journal = Cerebral Cortex

| volume = 14

| issue = 11

| pages = 1185–99

| last2 = McKinstry

| first2 = J. L.

| last3 = Edelman

| first3 = G. M.

| last4 = Krichmar

| first4 = J. L.

| doi = 10.1093/cercor/bhh079

| doi-access = free

}} which is proposed to be a requirement for consciousness, as outlined by Gerald Edelman and Giulio Tononi in their book A Universe of Consciousness.{{cite book|title=A Universe of Consciousness|publisher=Basic Books|year=2000|author=G. Edelman |author2=G Tononi |isbn=978-0-465-01377-7|title-link=A Universe of Consciousness}}.