Brain stress systems in the amygdala and addiction (2009)

Brain Res. 2009 October 13; 1293: 61–75. Pu:  10.1016/j.brainres.2009.03.038 George F. Koob* Abstract Dysregulation of the brain emotional systems that mediate arousal and stress is a key component of the pathophysiology of drug addiction. Drug addiction is a chronically relapsing disorder characterized by a compulsion to seek and take drugs and the development of dependence […]

Read More… from Brain stress systems in the amygdala and addiction (2009)

Predictability modulates human brain response to reward (2001)

COMMENTS: Unpredictable rewards lead to bigger spikes of dopamine. This is what makes high speed Internet porn different from porn of the past   J Neurosci. 2001 Apr 15;21(8):2793-8.   Berns GS, McClure SM, Pagnoni G, Montague PR. Source Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA. [email protected] […]

Read More… from Predictability modulates human brain response to reward (2001)

Liking and wanting linked to Reward Deficiency Syndrome (RDS): hypothesizing differential responsivity in brain reward circuitry (2012)

Curr Pharm Des. 2012;18(1):113-8. Blum K, Gardner E, Oscar-Berman M, Gold M. FULL STUDY Source Department of Psychiatry and McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32610, USA. [email protected] Abstract In an attempt to resolve controversy regarding the causal contributions of mesolimbic dopamine (DA) systems to reward, we evaluate the three main competing explanatory […]

Read More… from Liking and wanting linked to Reward Deficiency Syndrome (RDS): hypothesizing differential responsivity in brain reward circuitry (2012)

The digital revolution and adolescent brain evolution (2012)

J Adolesc Health. 2012 Aug;51(2):101-5.   Giedd JN. Source Brain Imaging Section, Child Psychiatry Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Abstract Remarkable advances in technologies that enable the distribution and use of information encoded as digital sequences of 1s or 0s have dramatically changed our way of life. Adolescents, old enough to […]

Read More… from The digital revolution and adolescent brain evolution (2012)

Brain study reveals the roots of chocolate temptations: Enkephalins trigger overeating (2012)

September 20th, 2012 in Medical research Extracellular enkephalin levels surged when rats began to eat milk chocolate M&Ms. Onset of eating coincided with a robust increase in extracellular enkephalin (met and leu), which remained sustained during eating and gradually tapered off as eating declined. The magnitude of the enkephalin increase in individuals correlated with their […]

Read More… from Brain study reveals the roots of chocolate temptations: Enkephalins trigger overeating (2012)

Structural and functional abnormalities found in brains of relapsed alcohol-dependent patients (2012)

COMMENTS: Unique study, which shows that relapse caused specific brain changes in the regions associated with impulse control and decision making (frontal lobes) September 20th, 2012 in Psychology & Psychiatry Scientists at Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin have succeeded in coming closer to determining the risk of relapse in detoxified alcohol-dependent patients. Using an imaging process […]

Read More… from Structural and functional abnormalities found in brains of relapsed alcohol-dependent patients (2012)

Sex, Drugs and Gluttony: How the Brain Controls Motivated Behaviors (2011)

Elaine M. Hull* Physiol Behav. 2011 July 25; 104(1): 173–177. Published online 2011 May 5. doi:  10.1016/j.physbeh.2011.04.057 Abstract Bart Hoebel has forged a view of an integrated neural network that mediates both natural rewards and drug use. He pioneered the use of microdialysis, and also effectively used electrical stimulation, lesions, microinjections, and immunohistochemistry. He found […]

Read More… from Sex, Drugs and Gluttony: How the Brain Controls Motivated Behaviors (2011)