I'm studying about mesolimbic pathway(reward pathway) and addiction using rodents.
I understand that there is dopamine neurons in VTA and that neuron release dopamine and convey to NAc or PFC, etc.
So I have question. When human or rodents is addicted to cocaine or alcohol, where does dopamine increase VTA or NAc?
Here is the answer of your question: http://www.nature.com/nrn/journal/v16/n5/full/nrn3939.html?foxtrotcallback=true
Kind regards
The short (and overly simplistic) answers:
1) Cocaine prevents the reuptake of Dopamine (DA) by blocking DA transporters (DAT) on the terminals of DA neurons in NAcc(/PFC) [these DA neurons are in the VTA, but they project to these regions where DA is released]. By blocking the reuptake of DA, DA levels are increased. So DA levels increase in NAcc/PFC.
2) Alcohol works differently, but, in short, it indirectly increases DA levels in the NAcc/PFC as well.
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