Altered Striatal Response During Effort-Based Valuation and Motivation in Alcohol-Dependent Individuals.

Aims: To use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the neural circuitry behind effort-related valuation and motivation in a population of alcohol-dependent participants and healthy controls. Methods: Seventeen alcohol-dependent participants and a comparison group of 17 healthy...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Publicado en:Alcohol & Alcoholism. Supplement Vol. 51; no. 6; pp. 638 - 647
Autores principales: Grodin, Erica N., Steckler, Leah E., Momenan, Reza
Formato: diagnostic images pictorial research tables/charts Journal Article
Publicado: Oxford University Press / USA Nov2016
Acceso en línea:Ver este registro en EBSCOhost
Descripción
Sumario:Aims: To use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate the neural circuitry behind effort-related valuation and motivation in a population of alcohol-dependent participants and healthy controls. Methods: Seventeen alcohol-dependent participants and a comparison group of 17 healthy control participants completed an effort-based motivation paradigm during an fMRI scan, in which they were required to exert effort at varying levels in order to earn a monetary reward. Results: We found that alcohol-dependent participants were less motivated during trials requiring high levels of effort. The whole-brain fMRI analysis revealed that alcohol-dependent participants displayed an increased blood-oxygen-level dependent (BOLD) signal during low and unknown effort cues in the dorsal and ventral striatum compared with healthy controls. Conclusion: These findings provide the first evidence that alcohol-dependent participants and healthy controls differ in their effort-based valuation and motivation processing. Alcohol-dependent participants displayed a hyperactive mesolimbic reward circuitry recruited by non-drug rewards, potentially reflecting a sensitization to reward in this patient population.