Erasing Memories Associated with Cocaine Use Reduces Drug Seeking Behavior
Disrupting memories associated with environmental cues significantly reduces cocaine seeking behaviors in rat models of addiction, a new study reports. ... Read More...
optogenetics
Synaptic Logic for Connections Between Two Brain Hemispheres Discovered
Researchers have developed a new technique that helps identify the functional properties of individual synapses that link the two hemispheres of the brain.... Read More...
Surprising Role of the Cerebellum in Reward and Social Behaviors
Researchers reveal the role the cerebellum plays in helping to control the brain's reward system. The researchers identified a direct connection from the cerebellum to the ventral tegmental area. The study may shed new light on neural networks associated with social dysfunction.... Read More...
How the Brain Makes Choices
From decision making to action, researchers explore how the brain allows us to make choices.... Read More...
Controlling Neurons with Light, But Without Wires or Batteries
Researchers have developed a new, wireless optogenetic device which is able to control neurons in the brain. The device could help turn off pain receptors and reduce the effects of some neurological disorders.... Read More...
How the Brain Enables Us to Rapidly Focus Attention
Researchers have identified a mechanism within the cholinergic system that underlies our ability to rapidly focus attention.... Read More...
Dopamine’s Yin-Yang Personality: It’s an Upper and a Downer
Researchers shed light on the dual nature of dopamine, as a neurotransmitter that makes us seek pleasure and also reinforces avoidance of pain.... Read More...
Clues to Brain Changes in Depression Discovered
A new study sheds light on how the brain processes rewards and provides a deeper understanding on the neurobiology of depression.... Read More...
Gut Branches of Vagus Nerve Essential Components of Brain’s Reward and Motivation System
Researchers report a gut-brain neural circuit establishes the vagus nerve as an essential component of the brain system that regulates reward and motivation.... Read More...
How the Brain Bounces Back
A new study reports activity, not rest, help speed up recovery following a brain injury.... Read More...
To Flee or Not to Flee: How the Brain Decides What to Do in the Face of Danger
Researchers have identified the variables that lead the brain to apply specific defensive strategies while under the threat of danger, and implicate a specific pair of neurons in this process.... Read More...
Hungry? A Newly Discovered Neural Circuit May Be to Blame
Researchers have identified a subset of neurons in a region of the hypothalamus that play a critical role in regulating feeding and appetite in mice.... Read More...