Addiction is caused, in part, by powerful and long-lasting memories of the drug experience.
Relapse caused by exposure to cues associated with the drug experience is a major clinical …

Brain endocannabinoid (eCB) signalling influences the motivation for natural rewards (such
as palatable food, sexual activity and social interaction) and modulates the rewarding effects …

Many excitatory synapses express Group 1, or Gq coupled, metabotropic glutamate
receptors (Gp1 mGluRs) at the periphery of their postsynaptic density. Activation of Gp1 …

There is a high degree of overlap between brain regions involved in processing natural
rewards and drugs of abuse.“Non-drug” or “behavioral” addictions have become …

Synaptic modifications in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) are important for adaptive and
pathological reward-dependent learning. Medium spiny neurons (MSNs), the major cell type …

A growing body of evidence indicates that repeated exposure to cocaine leads to profound
changes in glutamate transmission in limbic nuclei, particularly the nucleus accumbens. This …

In animal models of drug addiction, cocaine exposure has been shown to increase levels of
calcium-permeable AMPA receptors (CP-AMPARs) in two brain regions that are critical for …

Glutamate receptors regulate gene expression in neurons by activating intracellular
signaling cascades that phosphorylate transcription factors within the nucleus. The mitogen …

The bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) is widely acknowledged as a brain structure
that regulates stress and anxiety states, as well as aversive and appetitive behaviours. The …

Background and rationale Epidemiological evidence suggests that people who begin
experimenting with drugs of abuse during early adolescence are more likely to develop …