Neuroscience

Chronic cocaine use triggers changes in brain's neuron structure

Chronic exposure to cocaine reduces the expression of a protein known to regulate brain plasticity, according to new, in vivo research on the molecular basis of cocaine addiction. That reduction drives structural changes ...

Neuroscience

Brain scans can predict weight gain and sexual activity: study

At a time when obesity has become epidemic in American society, Dartmouth scientists have found that functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) brain scans may be able to predict weight gain. In a study published April ...

Neuroscience

Mechanism links substance abuse with vulnerability to depression

It is well established that a mood disorder can increase an individual's risk for substance abuse, but there is also evidence that the converse is true; substance abuse can increase a person's vulnerability to stress-related ...

Neuroscience

Eliminating protein in specific brain cells blocks nicotine reward

Removing a protein from cells located in the brain's reward center blocks the anxiety-reducing and rewarding effects of nicotine, according to a new animal study in the July 27 issue of The Journal of Neuroscience. The findings ...

Medical research

Study links insulin action on brain's reward circuitry to obesity

Researchers reporting in the June issue of Cell Metabolism have what they say is some of the first solid proof that insulin has direct effects on the reward circuitry of the brain. Mice whose reward centers can no longer ...

Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes

Does eating give you pleasure or make you anxious?

(Medical Xpress) -- Perhaps the most puzzling symptom of anorexia nervosa -- a disorder that tends to occur in young women -- is the refusal to eat, resulting in extreme weight loss. While most people have a great deal of ...

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