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dopamine

·June 6, 2023·7 min read

Dopamine Plays Double Duty in Learning and Motivation

A novel study suggests that dopamine, a neurotransmitter, plays dual roles in learning and motivation. In the study, male rats underwent Pavlovian or operant conditioning while their dopamine release was measured.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 27, 2023·4 min read

Vitamin D’s Crucial Role in Dopamine Function and Schizophrenia

Neuroscientists discovered how vitamin D deficiency impacts the development of neurons, contributing to disorders such as schizophrenia. Using innovative technology, they were able to observe that a lack of vitamin D not only changes neuron growth but also affects the brain's dopamine release mechanism. They found dopamine release was enhanced in cells grown in the presence of vitamin D, compared to a control.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 13, 2023·4 min read

Stop Signals Reduce Dopamine Levels and Dancing in Honeybees

Receiving a stop signal associated with negative food conditions can decrease brain dopamine levels in dancing honeybees. The study also discovered that artificially increasing dopamine levels in bees reduces the aversive effects of hornet attacks.

Featured Neuroscience

·April 12, 2023·6 min read

Whether Physical Exertion Feels Easy or Hard May Be Due to Dopamine Levels

Dopamine plays a vital role in why exercise and physical activity feels easy to some, but exhausting to others, a new study reports. The findings could lead to more effective ways to help people begin and stick to exercise regimes, and sheds new light on fatigue associated with depression and Parkinson's disease.

This is a cross section of a mouse brain

Featured Neuroscience

·April 5, 2023·4 min read

Danger or Pleasure? How We Learn to Tell the Difference

Scientists have discovered that somatostatin-expressing neurons in the amygdala help distinguish between good and bad stimuli, responding differently to rewards versus punishments and even different types of rewards. Inhibiting these neurons in mice resulted in an inability to learn to associate sounds with rewards or punishments, providing potential insight into addiction and opportunities for new treatments.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·March 24, 2023·5 min read

New Discovery Reveals Sex-Specific Causes of Depression Triggered by Stress Hormones Dysfunction

Men are more likely to have a dysregulated HPA axis that is associated with depressive symptoms, while women have higher levels of binding proteins for stress hormones that may prevent dysregulation of the HPA axis. The findings shed new light on how stress hormones impact dopamine transmission and how this impacts depression on a sex-specific basis.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·March 22, 2023·6 min read

Multiple Substance Use Disorders May Share Inherited Genetic Signature

A common genetic signature has been linked to an increased risk of substance use disorders from smoking addiction to addiction to narcotics. The findings could pave the way to the development of new therapies for substance use disorder and may help diagnose those at risk to multiple substance use disorders.

Featured Neuroscience

·March 22, 2023·3 min read

Sweets Change Our Brain: Why Sweet Foods Are Irresistible

Consuming high-fat and high-sugar foods causes changes in activity and connectivity in the brain's dopaminergic system, resulting in a stronger preference for these foods.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·March 16, 2023·4 min read

Matcha Tea Powder Has Antidepressant-Like Effects

Researchers say Matcha, a traditional Japanese tea, can help boost mood and mental performance. Match tea powder activates dopaminergic neural networks and improves depressive symptoms in mice that previously experienced stress as a result of social isolation.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience

·February 22, 2023·6 min read

Dial for Tuning Dopamine and Environmental Signals Found in Parkinson’s

Study reveals how signals from the environment integrate with genetic information that influences the survival and health of neurons, providing new insights into how Parkinson's disease may develop. Findings reveal the TNK2 gene mutations lead to the degeneration of dopamine producing neurons, resulting in Parkinson's disease pathology.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·February 7, 2023·5 min read

Differences in Dopamine Signals in Patients With History of Alcohol Use Disorder

The connection between dopamine and counterfactual information, or notions of relief and regret, is altered in those with alcohol use disorder.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·January 27, 2023·4 min read

A Drug That Increases Dopamine Can Reverse the Effects of Inflammation on the Brain in Depression

Levodopa, a drug commonly prescribed for the treatment of Parkinson's disease that increases dopamine in the brain was found to reverse the effects of neuroinflammation on the reward system and improve symptoms associated with depression.