How dopamine governs ongoing decisions
From the Salk Institute media release: Say you’re reaching for the fruit cup at a buffet, but at the last second you switch gears and grab a cupcake instead. Emotionally, your decision is a complex…
Study examines how to break habits … before they start
From the MIT press release by Anne Trafton via HealthCanal: Our daily routines can become so ingrained that we perform them automatically, such as taking the same route to work every day. Some behaviors, such…
Study suggests central amygdala plays major role in sustaining cocaine addiction
From the Scripps Research Institute press release via EurekAlert!: Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have found evidence that an emotion-related brain region called the central amygdala—whose activity promotes feelings of malaise and unhappiness—plays…
Study links missing enzyme to drug addiction
From the Endocrine Society press release via EurekAlert!: A missing brain enzyme increases concentrations of a protein related to pain-killer addiction, according to an animal study. The results will be presented Monday at The Endocrine…
Study suggests a brain protein may help block cocaine craving
From the Indiana University press release via EurekAlert!: A new study conducted by a team of Indiana University neuroscientists demonstrates that GLT1, a protein that clears glutamate from the brain, plays a critical role in…
Study finds molecular roots of cocaine addiction in the brain
From the Johns Hopkins Medicine press release via EurekAlert!: Researchers at Johns Hopkins have unraveled the molecular foundations of cocaine’s effects on the brain, and identified a compound that blocks cravings for the drug in…
Study examines addiction as a disorder of decision-making
From the Canadian Association for Neuroscience press release via EurekAlert!: New research shows that craving drugs such as nicotine can be visualized in specific regions of the brain that are implicated in determining the value…
Study links parental addictions to adult children’s depression
From the University of Toronto press release: The offspring of parents who were addicted to drugs or alcohol are more likely to be depressed in adulthood, according to a new study by University of Toronto…
Study suggests dopamine regulates the motivation to act
From the Asociacion RUVID press release via MedicalXpress: The widespread belief that dopamine regulates pleasure could go down in history with the latest research results on the role of this neurotransmitter. Researchers have proved that…
Study links pathological gambling to excessive optimism
From the CNRS (Délégation Paris Michel-Ange) press release via AlphaGalileo: Compulsive gamblers suffer from an optimism bias that modifies their subjective representation of probability and affects their decisions in situations involving high-risk monetary wagers. This…