Thalamic volume and functional connectivity are associated with nicotine dependence severity and craving.

ABSTRACT: Tobacco smoking is associated with deleterious health outcomes. Most smokers want to quit smoking, yet relapse rates are high. Understanding neural differences associated with tobacco use may help generate novel treatment options. Several animal studies have recently highlighted the central role of the thalamus in substance use disorders, but this research focus has been understudied in human smokers. Here, we investigated associations between structural and functional magnetic resonance imaging measures of the thalamus and its subnuclei to distinct smoking characteristics. We acquired anatomical scans of 32 smokers as well as functional resting-state scans before and after a cue-reactivity task. Thalamic functional connectivity was associated with craving and dependence severity, whereas

SUBMITTER: Lor CS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10078543 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature