The mesocorticolimbic system, consisting, at its core, of the ventral tegmental area, the nucleus
accumbens, and medial prefrontal cortex, has historically been investigated primarily for …

Phasic increases in brain dopamine are required for cue-directed reward seeking. Although
compelling within the framework of appetitive behavior, the view that illicit drugs hijack …

The dopamine projection to the nucleus accumbens has been implicated in behaviors directed
toward the acquisition and consumption of natural rewards. The neurochemical studies …

The ability to predict favorable outcomes using environmental cues is an essential part of
learned behavior. Dopamine neurons in the midbrain encode such stimulus-reward …

The nucleus accumbens (NAc) is a key component of the brain's reward pathway, yet little is
known of how NAc cells respond to primary rewarding or aversive stimuli. Here, naive rats …

Rewarding and aversive stimuli evoke very different patterns of behavior and are rapidly
discriminated. Here taste stimuli of opposite hedonic valence evoked opposite patterns of …

Motivated behaviors are often initiated in response to perturbations of homeostasis. Indeed,
animals and humans have fundamental drives to procure (appetitive behaviors) and …

Cocaine acts as a reinforcer through its pharmacological effects on brain monoaminergic
systems, which, through repeated pairings with environmental stimuli, lead to the development …

Trodusquemine (MSI‐1436) causes rapid and reversible weight loss in genetic models of
obesity. To better predict the potential effects of trodusquemine in the clinic, we investigated …

Phasic changes in dopamine activity play a critical role in learning and goal‐directed behavior.
Unpredicted reward and reward‐predictive cues evoke phasic increases in the firing rate …