Everyday human behavior is guided and shaped by the search for rewards. This includes eating tasty meals, drinking something refreshing, sexual activity and nurturing children. Many of these behaviors ...

Study: Molecular and circuit determinants in the globus pallidus mediating control of cocaine-induced behavioral plasticity. Image Credit: Alex Mit / Shutterstock.com Ventral tegmental area dopamine ...

Cocaine, a drug of abuse, activates just a portion — 10 to 20 percent — of the neurons in the brain’s nucleus accumbens, a critical region linked to motivation and addiction. Though small in numbers, ...

Neuroscientists find that two distinct neural pathways are responsible for the addictive properties of the opioid fentanyl: one mediates reward, the other promotes the seeking of relief from symptoms ...

Recently, a research team led by Dr. ZHU Yingjie from the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences has published a study in Neuron, the study presents a comprehensive ...

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.) Ana Clara Bobadilla, Colorado State University (THE CONVERSATION) Everyday human ...