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Striatocortical pathway dysfunction in addiction and obesity: differences and similarities
1National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, USA. tomasi@bnl.gov
Critical Reviews in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
|November 24, 2012
Summary
Neuroimaging reveals shared brain circuitry in addiction and eating disorders, with dopamine signaling and prefrontal metabolism abnormalities common to both. Obesity and eating disorders show more widespread brain network disruptions than drug addictions.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Addiction Research
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Addiction and disorders of dyscontrol over rewarding behaviors share overlapping brain circuitry.
- Neuroimaging studies increasingly highlight these connections.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review neuroimaging findings differentiating brain activation in addiction and obesity from controls.
- To map brain networks connected with ventral and dorsal striatum.
Main Methods:
- Review of recent neuroimaging studies (PET, fMRI).
- Analysis of brain activation patterns in drug/food addiction and obesity.
- Examination of functional connectivity within striato-cortical pathways.
Main Results:
- Impaired striatal dopamine (DA) signaling (decreased D2 receptors) and reduced prefrontal glucose metabolism are observed in addiction and obesity.
- Abnormalities in DA-modulated striato-cortical pathways are implicated.
- Overlapping dorsal and ventral striatal networks are frequently abnormal in addiction and obesity.
- Obesity and eating disorders show more widespread abnormalities, particularly in medial temporal and superior frontal regions, compared to drug addictions.
Conclusions:
- Both ventral striatal (reward/motivation) and dorsal striatal (habit learning) networks are involved in addiction and obesity.
- Distinct patterns of brain abnormalities exist between drug addiction and eating disorders/obesity.
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