Hot Off the Press – May 10, 2019. Cell-specific CRISPR/Cas9 in the adult rat brain. Microscopic images of the midbrain of a transgenic rat that selectively expresses Cas9 in dopamine neurons. On the left side, control gRNAs were delivered to cells in the midbrain using a virus (green). On the right side, gRNAs to a… [Read More]
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Compulsive drug use is associated with imbalance of orbitofrontal- and prelimbic-striatal circuits in punishment-resistant individuals
Hot Off the Press – May 6, 2019. We report that in a methamphetamine self-administration experiment, all rats show changes in the balance between “go” and “stop” brain circuits, however after foot shock punishment, behavior in the addictive subgroup is strongly correlated with the change in the balance of “go” and “stop” circuits, while the… [Read More]
Expectancy-Related Changes in Dopaminergic Error Signals Are Impaired by Cocaine Self-Administration.
Featured Paper of the Month – May 2019
Published in Neuron by Takahashi, Yuji K; Stalnaker, Thomas A; Marrero-Garcia, Yasmin; Rada, Ray M; Schoenbaum, Geoffrey
Addiction is a disorder of behavioral control and learning. While this may reflect pre-existing propensities, drug use also clearly contributes by causing changes in outcome processing in prefrontal and striatal regions. This altered processing is associated with behavioral deficits, including changes in learning. These areas provide critical input to midbrain dopamine neurons regarding expected outcomes, suggesting that effects on learning may result from changes in dopaminergic error signaling…
Marco Venniro wins NIH Matilda White Riley Behavioral and Social Sciences Award for Early Stage Investigators
Marco Venniro has been chosen the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) as a winner in its Early Stage Investigator paper competition. Marco is a postdoctoral fellow at the NIDA IRP and he was honored for his paper Volitional social interaction prevents drug addiction in rat models, published in Nature Neuroscience. Marco… [Read More]
Oxytocin blocks enhanced motivation for alcohol in alcohol dependence and blocks alcohol effects on GABAergic transmission in the central amygdala.
Hot Off the Press – April 22, 2019. The neuropeptide oxytocin blocks enhanced drinking in alcohol-dependent rats, according to a study published April 16 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology led by Drs. Tunstall, Koob and Vendruscolo of the National Institutes of Health, and Drs. Kirson and Roberto of The Scripps Research Institute. Targeting the… [Read More]
Ultrapotent chemogenetics for research and potential clinical applications.
Hot Off the Press – April 12, 2019. NIDA-funded scientists have just published findings in the journal Science showing the development of a new, groundbreaking chemogenetics technology for modulating brain function in a remote, precise and ultra-sensitive manner in living subjects. These findings describe new chemogenetic ion channels for neuron activation and silencing that are controlled by… [Read More]
Heroin addiction engages negative emotional learning brain circuits in rats
Hot Off the Press – April 8, 2019. The United States is amid an unprecedented opioid epidemic. From 2002 through 2016, the number of heroin users increased by 135% and the number of deaths attributable to heroin increased by 533%. Therefore, there is an urgent need for research into the neurobiology of opioid use disorder… [Read More]
Dopamine D3R antagonist VK4-116 attenuates oxycodone self-administration and reinstatement without compromising its antinociceptive effects.
Featured Paper of the Month – April 2019
Published in Neuropsychopharmacology by You, Zhi-Bing; Bi, Guo-Hua; Galaj, Ewa; Kumar, Vivek; Cao, Jianjing; Gadiano, Alexandra; Rais, Rana; Slusher, Barbara S; Gardner, Eliot L; Xi, Zheng-Xiong; Newman, Amy Hauck
Opioid use disorders are currently a serious health problem worldwide and yet prescription opioids remain as the most effective medications to treat pain. VK4-116, a highly selective dopamine D3 receptor antagonist, significantly inhibited acquisition of oxycodone self-administration behaviors and decreased oxycodone seeking in several rodent models. VK4-116 was also effective in a model of opioid-induced relapse and on diminishing the aversive effects of naloxone precipitated withdrawal…
Opioid-galanin receptor heteromers mediate the dopaminergic effects of opioids
Hot Off the Press – April 1, 2019. Identifying non-addictive opioid medications is a high priority in medical sciences, but μ-opioid receptors mediate both the analgesic and addictive effects of opioids. We found a significant pharmacodynamic difference between morphine and methadone that is determined entirely by heteromerization of μ-opioid receptors with galanin Gal1 receptors, rendering… [Read More]
Synaptic and intrinsic plasticity in the ventral tegmental area after chronic cocaine.
Reviews To Read – March 2019. Cocaine drives persistent changes in synaptic transmission and ventral tegmental area dopamine neuron activity. Francis et al. reviews how these alterations contribute to cocaine addiction and highlight therapeutic avenues for future treatment.
