Cited by 126Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on BehaviorNeural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesCannabis and Cannabinoid Research

Reward-centricity and attenuated aversions: an adolescent phenotype emerging from studies in laboratory animals

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Doremus-Fitzwater, Tamara L., Spear, Linda P.·2016·Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews

Abstract

Adolescence is an evolutionarily conserved developmental period, with neural circuits and behaviors contributing to the detection, procurement, and receipt of rewards bearing similarity across species. Studies with laboratory animals suggest that adolescence is typified by a "reward-centric" phenotype-an increased sensitivity to rewards relative to adults. In contrast, adolescent rodents are reportedly less sensitive to the aversive properties of many drugs and naturally aversive stimuli. Alterations within the mesocorticolimbic dopamine and endocannabinoid systems likely contribute to an adolescent reward-sensitive, yet aversion-resistant, phenotype. Although early hypotheses postulated that developmental changes in dopaminergic circuitry would result in a "reward deficiency" syndrome, evidence now suggests the opposite: that adolescents are uniquely poised to seek out hedonic stimuli, experience greater "pleasure" from rewards, and consume rewarding stimuli in excess. Future studies that more clearly define the role of specific brain regions and neurotransmitter systems in the expression of behaviors toward reward- and aversive-related cues and stimuli are necessary to more fully understand an adolescent-proclivity for and vulnerability to rewards and drugs of potential abuse.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.08.015

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  • The week between PND21-28 has been described as the juvenile period, with PND21 identified as the lower boundary for early adolescence.

    “The week between PND21 -28 has also been described as the juvenile period, with PND21 identified as the lower boundary for early adolescence (Burke and Miczek, 2014; Doremus-Fitzwater and Spear, 2016)”

    From Age-dependent Effects of Tobacco Smoke and Nicotine on Cognition and the Brain: A Systematic Review of the Human and Animal Literature Comparing Adolescents and Adults. (2023) · cites this paper as Doremus-Fitzwater and Spear, 2016

    The Introduction (page unavailable) places the approximate start of adolescence in rats at P28, including in its broader definition, rather than P21. It does not describe P21–28 as the juvenile period; that omission alone is not a contradiction, but the stated P28 boundary conflicts with the claim’s P21 boundary. (LLM, conf=0.85)

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Authors
Doremus-Fitzwater, T. L., & Spear, L. P.
Affiliations
Binghamton University (US)
Venue
Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2016-11
Volume
70
Pages
121-134
ISSN
0149-7634 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2509123191
Cited by
125
References
215
Citations by year
2026: 14 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 13 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 16 · 2017: 16 · 2016: 1
FWCI
1.79
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
NIH (U01 AA019972, P50 AA017823, R01 AA018026)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology › Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research
Keywords
adolescence, reward sensitivity, mesocorticolimbic dopamine system, endocannabinoid system, reward deficiency syndrome, drug addiction vulnerability, hedonic reward, developmental neuroscience
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Animals, Animals, Laboratory, Brain, Dopamine, Humans, Phenotype, Reward

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