Sex-dependent modulation of behavioral allocation via ventral tegmental area-nucleus accumbens shell circuitry.

ABSTRACT: Diagnostic criteria for substance use disorder, cocaine type (i.e., cocaine use disorder), outlined in the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, imply that the disorder arises, at least in part, from the maladaptive allocation of behavior to drug use. To date, however, the neural circuits involved in the allocation of behavior have not been systematically evaluated. Herein, a chemogenetics approach (i.e., designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs (DREADDs)) was utilized in combination with a concurrent choice self-administration experimental paradigm to evaluate the role of the mesolimbic neurocircuit in the allocation of behavior. Pharmacological activation of hM3D(G_q) DREADDs in neurons projecting from the ventral teg

SUBMITTER: McLaurin KA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12304879 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature