RUI: Dopamine-glutamate synergy in reward evaluation in the extended amygdala and nucleus accumbens

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Humans frequently must determine the potential benefits of their behavior and weigh those benefits against the cost of obtaining them. For example, given a choice between food and shelter, a person might consider how hungry he or she is, how important shelter is at the moment, how much effort it would take to obtain each, and then act on one of the options. To make these decisions, the central nervous system must be able to calculate and compare the value of each option. The research supported by this award combines behavioral and pharmacological techniques to study an animal model for decision making, and specifically, for the process by which value is computed. In these experiments, rats make a lever press response to obtain highly rewarding electrical stimulation of a particular brain area. This stimulation is thought to produce the same brain activity produced when an animal considers the value of a behavioral option. By correlating changes in the stimulation strength with corresponding changes in lever pressing, one can determine how much value the rat currently puts on the stimulation. Then, specific neurochemicals are applied to the brain areas thought to be important in calculating the stimulation's value and the resulting effects on the stimulation's perceived value observed. This work will yield information about which neurochemicals and brain cells are involved in value calculation, and, ultimately, how these chemicals and cells might function improperly in conditions such as drug addiction or compulsive consumption. The project will also provide training opportunities for undergraduate students contributing to the development of the Nation's next generation of scientists.