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The Nucleus Accumbens
Martina Cupova and Julia Matejcek
Location in the Brain• Midbrain, at the top
of the brainstem.• Works in tandem
with the other centers involved in pleasure.– Ventral tagmental
area– Prefrontal cortex
Function• Part of the reward circuit.• Two neurotransmitters:
– dopamine (desire)– seretonin (satiety and
inhibition)• Maintains motivation.• Controls feeding, sexual,
reward, stress-related, and drug self-administration behaviours.
A study by James Oldes• Aim – to determine how rats would respond to
the opportunity of stimulating their pleasure centers by pressing a lever.
Procedure
• Oldes implanted electrodes in the brains of the rats.
• They received an electrical shock to their nucleus accumbens each time they pressed a lever.
• In some conditions, an electrified grid was placed between the rat and the lever.
Results and Findings
• The rats became addicted to the rush of pushing the lever.
• They preferred it to eating and drinking – some of the rats even starved themselves.
• Many even ran across the electrified grid to reach the lever.
A study by Axmacher et al.
• Aim: to determine whether activation of the nucleus accumbens precedes the formation of memories of surprising events.
Procedure• Implanted electrodes in the nucleus accumbens
and hippocampus of participants.• Showed participants a picture of a face on a red
background for a few seconds and then switched the picture to a house on a green background.
• Used an electroencephalogram (EEG) to put together the overall pattern of brain activity while this was happening.
Results and Findings• Switching the stimulus activated the
hippocampus, the nucleus accumbens, and then the hippocampus again.
• This brain pattern provides a way to consistently predict memory formation.
• The nucleus accumbens is involved in processing not only rewards, but also novel information.– May influence further processing by the
hippocampus.
Schaepfer et al.
• Aim: try to treat severely depressed patients who had not responded to alternative treatments using deep brain stimulation.
Procedure
• Implanted the electrodes in the nucleus accumbens of the patients.
• Turned on the stimulator to send electrical signals to that part of the brain.
• Turned the stimulator on and off over a period of weeks and tracked development of symptoms by questionnaires.
Results and Findings• Most patients reported positive effects
instantaneously – they had newfound motivation.
• Most patients improved only in the short-term – they had instant results that did not last.
• Deep brain stimulation of the nucleus accumbens did not treat depression in the long term.
What happens when the nucleus accumbens is dysfunctional?
• Depression – the nucleus accumbens is the centerpiece of the rewards circuit so when it is dysfunctional, motivation and satisfaction can be impaired.
• ADHD – motivation is impaired.
• Drug addiction – unusually high levels of dopamine in the nucleus accumbens.
Works CitedCrane, J., & Hannibal, J. (2009). Psychology: Course Companion. Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
Dubuc, B. (2002, September). The Pleasure Centres Affected by Drugs. In The
Brain from Top to Bottom. Retrieved from http://thebrain.mcgill.ca/
Fernandez-Espejo, E. (2000, May). How does the Nucleus Accumbens
Function? In Pub Med [biomedical data base]. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ pubmed
Harmon, K. (2010, February 24). Surprised? How the Brain Records Memories
of the Unexpected. In The Scientific American. Retrieved from
http://www.scientificamerican.com
Works Cited cont.New Way To Fight Cocaine Addiction Discovered. (2009, April 2). Science Daily.
Retrieved from University of California - Irvine website:
http://www.sciencedaily.com
Scientists Discover Alterations in Brain’s Reward System Related to Attention-
Deficit/ hyperactivity Disorder. (n.d.). Science Daily. Retrieved from
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona website: http://www.sciencedaily.com
Singer, E. (2007, April 26). Brain Electrodes Help Treat Depression. In Technology
Review. Retrieved from Massachusetts Institute of Technology website:
http://technologyreview.com
Surprise! Neural Mechanism May Underlie an Enhanced Memory for the
Unexpected. (2010, February 25). Science Daily.