The DOI matches its Crossref record; 264 of the 265 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The neurocircuitry of addiction: an overview
Open accessAbstract
Drug addiction presents as a chronic relapsing disorder characterized by persistent drug-seeking and drug-taking behaviours. Given the significant detrimental effects of this disease both socially and economically, a considerable amount of research has been dedicated to understanding a number of issues in addiction, including behavioural and neuropharmacological factors that contribute to the development, loss of control and persistence of compulsive addictive behaviours. In this review, we will give a broad overview of various theories of addiction, animal models of addiction and relapse, drugs of abuse, and the neurobiology of drug dependence and relapse. Although drugs of abuse possess diverse neuropharmacological profiles, activation of the mesocorticolimbic system, particularly the ventral tegmental area, nucleus accumbens, amygdala and prefrontal cortex via dopaminergic and glutamatergic pathways, constitutes a common pathway by which various drugs of abuse mediate their acute reinforcing effects. However, long-term neuroadaptations in this circuitry likely underlie the transition to drug dependence and cycles of relapse. As further elucidated in more comprehensive reviews of various subtopics on addiction in later sections of this special issue, it is anticipated that continued basic neuroscience research will aid in the development of effective therapeutic interventions for the long-term treatment of drug-dependent individuals.
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“Beyond reward and craving, the nucleus accumbens is crucially involved in substance abuse and dependence (36-38)”
From Effects of dietary glycemic index on brain regions related to reward and craving in men (2013) · cites this paper as [37]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Feltenstein, M. W., & See, R. E.
- Affiliations
- Medical University of South Carolina (US)
- Corresponding author
- Feltenstein, M W
- Venue
- British Journal of Pharmacology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2008-05
- Volume
- 154
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 261-274
- ISSN
- 0007-1188 (ISSN-L)
- 1476-5381
- PMC
- PMC2442446
- OpenAlex
- W1867555087
- Cited by
- 421
- References
- 265
- Citations by year
- 2026: 8 · 2025: 14 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 18 · 2020: 16 · 2019: 21 · 2018: 19 · 2017: 18 · 2016: 28 · 2015: 22 · 2014: 28 · 2013: 41 · 2012: 40
- FWCI
- 3.02
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- British Journal of Pharmacology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (1c06rr015455-01a1, DA016511, DA015369)
- National Institute on Drug Abuse (DA016511, DA07288, R01DA010462, DA 015369, P50DA015369, P50DA016511, DA010462, T32DA007288)
- National Center for Research Resources (C06 RR-015455)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
- Keywords
- drug addiction, neurocircuitry, relapse, mesocorticolimbic system, ventral tegmental area, nucleus accumbens, amygdala, prefrontal cortex, dopaminergic pathways, glutamatergic pathways, neural adaptation, animal models of addiction, drugs of abuse, addiction theory, compulsive drug seeking
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Behavior, Animal, Central Nervous System Agents, Dopamine, Humans, Limbic System, Models, Psychological, Neural Pathways, Recurrence, Substance Withdrawal Syndrome, Behavior, Addictive, Neurotransmitter Agents, Glutamic Acid, Substance-Related Disorders, Models, Animal
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