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·November 8, 2018·5 min read

Dopamine Primes the Brain for Enhanced Vigilance

Researchers have identified a brain network that may control the diversion of attention to focus on potential threats. Dopamine, they report, is key to the process.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·October 30, 2018·4 min read

Dopamine Drives Early Addiction to Heroin

Researchers have identified a significant role dopamine plays in the development of heroin addiction. The study reports dopamine appears to directly cause drug reinforcement and, when dopamine neurons are silenced, mice are less likely to self administer the drug.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·October 24, 2018·5 min read

New Target of Alcohol in the Brain Identified

Researchers have identified a new target of alcohol in the brain. A new study reveals alcohol blocks the KCNK13 potassium channel within the membrane of dopamine releasing neurons in the ventral tegmental area.

Featured Neurology Neuroscience Psychology

·August 3, 2018·4 min read

How Cues Drive Our Behavior

Researchers shed light on the role dopamine neurons play in assigning values to transient environmental cues that drive behaviors.

Featured Genetics

·July 13, 2018·3 min read

Maged1 Gene Protects Against Cocaine Addiction

A new study reports mice lacking the Maged1 gene are unable to acquire an addiction to cocaine.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·June 27, 2018·4 min read

Dopamine’s Role in Unlearning Fearful Association

Researchers report dopamine neurons may play a role in fear extinction. The study suggests targeting dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area could be of therapeutic benefit to reduce the impact of learned fear in PTSD and anxiety disorders.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·June 26, 2018·3 min read

How Your Brain Decides Between Knowledge and Ignorance

Researchers report the brain's reward network could play an influential role in evaluating the opportunity to gain new information, just as it does to evaluate rewards such as food or financial gain.

Featured Neuroscience

·June 13, 2018·3 min read

Neural Circuit Mechanisms of Emotion Identified

Researchers shed light on the mechanisms behind the anxiolytic CRH circuit in the ventral tegmental area of the brain.

Featured Neurology

·March 27, 2018·4 min read

Detecting Diminishing Dopamine Firing Cells in Brain Could Reveal Earliest Signs of Alzheimer’s

According to researchers, if the ventral tegmental area is unable to produce the correct amount of dopamine for the hippocampus, it will not work efficiently and the impairment can result in dementia.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·March 2, 2018·5 min read

In Pursuit of Pleasure, the Brain Learns to Hit the Repeat Button

According to researchers, the brain learns to reproduce brain activity patterns that lead to reward. The findings could lead to new avenues for treating addiction and OCD, researchers report.