Dopamine News and Research

Latest Dopamine News and Research

Vilcek Foundation prizes awarded to immigrants for their work on human biology and disease

The Vilcek Foundation is pleased to announce the winners of the 2019 Vilcek Foundation Prizes for Biomedical Science, awarded to immigrants who have made significant contributions to the field. Dr. Angelika Amon will receive the $100,000 Vilcek Prize, while Drs. Amit Choudhary, Jeanne T. Paz, and Mikhail G. Shapiro will each receive the $50,000 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise.

8 Feb 2019

MUSC researchers examine the way estrogen affects drug addiction

Male rats have held steady as the focus of most addiction studies in the past. But as the field begins to take female rats into account, scientists see that drugs like methamphetamine affect the sexes differently, suggesting the basis for a change in addiction treatment.

7 Feb 2019

New study points to potential cure for addiction

The Akay Lab biomedical research team at the University of Houston is reporting in the journal Nature Scientific Reports that a possible cure for addiction may be found by following the pathways of significantly altered dopamine neurons in newborns who were chronically exposed to nicotine in utero.

7 Feb 2019

Making the Most of Microdialysis for Neurotransmitter Analysis

Martin Eysberg provides an introduction to the ALEXYS Neurotransmitter Analyzer, an extremely precise UHPLC-EC detector for neurotransmitter analysis.

From Antec Scientific 6 Feb 2019

Gut microbes could be linked to depression

The human gut contains trillions of bacteria that form the gut microbiome or microbiota. A new research has linked the composition of this gut microbiome and depressive disorder.

4 Feb 2019

Exercising regularly linked to better eating habits

In the latest evidence that it's worth sticking to your health-focused New Year's resolutions, researchers at the University of Texas at Austin have found that exercising regularly is linked to better eating habits.

30 Jan 2019

Study finds that spatial architecture largely dictates connectivity within the brain

A University of California, Irvine-led study reveals that connectivity within the brain appears to be largely dictated by spatial architecture rather than cell type-specific cues. The study was published this month in Cell Reports.

27 Jan 2019

Researchers discover new details of brain pathway related to impulsive behaviors

Researchers from Singapore and South Korea have uncovered new details of a brain pathway that can cause impulsive behaviors.

25 Jan 2019

Study reveals link between dopamine and reward responses in humans when listening to music

A new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), reveals a causal link between dopamine and the reward responses in humans when listening to music.

25 Jan 2019

Study shows how gut bacteria affect the treatment of Parkinson's disease

Patients with Parkinson's disease are treated with levodopa, which is converted into dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain. In a study published on 18 January in the journal Nature Communications, scientists from the University of Groningen show that gut bacteria can metabolize levodopa into dopamine.

18 Jan 2019

Mutant mice administered with cocaine failed to exhibit hyperactivity, shows study

Cocaine is a highly addictive psychostimulant that induces complex molecular, cellular and behavioral responses. Despite various approaches and years of pre-clinical studies, effective, mechanism-based therapies to assist with cocaine misuse and dependence are still sorely lacking.

16 Jan 2019

Study suggests key role for glial cells in Parkinson's disease

A team of scientists led by Prof. Antonella Consiglio from the IDIBELL and the University of Barcelona, and Prof. Angel Raya from the Center of Regenerative Medicine of Barcelona have discovered that defective versions of human brain cells called astrocytes are linked to the buildup of a toxic protein that is one the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease.

16 Jan 2019

UTSA researchers reveal important insight into cocaine addiction

Researchers at The University of Texas at San Antonio have revealed significant insight into cocaine addiction, a phenomenon which has grown significantly in the United States since 2015.

10 Jan 2019

Defective astrocytes linked to alpha-synuclein accumulation in Parkinson's

Researchers have found that defects in brain glial cells called astrocytes are linked to the accumulation of alpha-synuclein in Parkinson's disease.

10 Jan 2019

Therapeutic implications of caffeine in neuropsychiatric disorders

An important new article reviews recently discovered properties of adenosine A2A receptor-dopamine D2 receptor and adenosine A1 receptor-dopamine D1 receptor heteromers--both of which are main targets for caffeine--and discusses the therapeutic implications of these findings.

7 Jan 2019

Researchers develop new method of analysis to map cellular locations of proteins

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet and SciLifeLab have developed a new method of analysis that maps the location of proteins in the cell. The information has been compiled in a database that is accessible to researchers around the world.

3 Jan 2019

Study provides new insights into how genes are activated

In a study in Nature, researchers at Karolinska Institutet present a new method for analyzing how instructions in the genome control how our genes are activated in individual cells.

2 Jan 2019

Hyperactive immune system implicated in aging brain disorders

In a study of fruit flies, NIH scientists suggested that the body's immune system may play a critical role in the damage caused by aging brain disorders. The results are based on experiments in which the researchers altered the activity of Cdk5, a gene that preclinical studies have suggested is important for early brain development and may be involved in neurodegenerative diseases, such as ALS, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

2 Jan 2019

Using Assay Kits and Dyes to Advance Cell Biology Research

In this interview, Richard Delle Bovi highlights live cell ability of the CELLESTIAL® analysis kit from Enzo Life Sciences and its applications in cell biology.

From Enzo Life Sciences, Inc. 2 Jan 2019

Study suggests dopamine release in the brain occurs twice per meal

We know a good meal can stimulate the release of the feel-good hormone dopamine, and now a study in humans from the Max Planck Institute for Metabolism Research in Germany suggests that dopamine release in the brain occurs at two different times: at the time the food is first ingested and another once the food reaches the stomach.

28 Dec 2018