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Cocaine-evoked synaptic plasticity: a key to addiction?

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Drugs of abuse are known to induce changes in synaptic strength in the reward neurons of the brain. Two recent studies shed some light on how drug-induced plasticity might mediate addictive behavior long after drug use.

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Figure 1: Timeline of cocaine-evoked synaptic plasticity in the nucleus accumbens.
Figure 2: The spiral to addiction.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Basic Neurosciences, Medical Faculty, University of Geneva, Geneva, CH-1211, Switzerland

    Christian Lüscher & Camilla Bellone

  2. Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Christian Lüscher is also at the Clinic of Neurology, Geneva University Hospital, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland. christian.luscher@medecine.unige.ch,

    Christian Lüscher

Authors
  1. Christian Lüscher
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  2. Camilla Bellone
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Lüscher, C., Bellone, C. Cocaine-evoked synaptic plasticity: a key to addiction?. Nat Neurosci 11, 737–738 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn0708-737

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