Scientists are one step closer to solving the mystery of Alice in Wonderland Syndrome!

A new study mapping a brain circuit has brought the scientific world a little closer to understanding a mysterious and rare disorder known as "Alice in Wonderland Syndrome." This research, which has not yet undergone peer review, has identified a network involving two distinct brain regions related to body perception and size processing.

As reported by Chip, it is these events in the book that give Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS) its name. According to the authors of the recent preprint, it is a rare condition with only about 170 cases described in medical literature.

Individuals with AIWS often report perceiving their own body parts, the bodies of others, or objects as exaggeratedly large or small. Some researchers have suggested that the scope of AIWS should be expanded to include other perceptual disorders, such as the feeling that time is passing quickly.

In the research presented in the preprint, it is noted that because the cause of AIWS has not yet been clearly determined, the condition is difficult to understand. Using brain scans of 37 individuals with AIWS, the study's authors applied a technique called lesion network mapping. According to the data obtained, most AIWS brain lesions were connected to two specific centers: the right extrastriate body area (EBA) and the left inferior parietal lobule (IPL).

While the right EBA is involved in visual processing, the left IPL is activated during tasks involving size and measurement determination. Therefore, it seems logical that these two regions are associated with a disorder specific to AIWS.

The authors state that their work is the largest study to date regarding AIWS lesion locations, while acknowledging the limitations of the small sample size and emphasizing the need for further data collection.