Alcohol Use Disorder Interventions Targeting Brain Sites for Both Conditioned Reward and Delayed Gratification.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Addiction Research
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Alcohol use disorder (AUD) is marked by relapse and poor recovery.
• Key features include heightened reactivity to alcohol cues and impaired executive function.
• Understanding shared brain mechanisms of interventions is crucial for effective AUD treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify and compare the brain sites of action for interventions targeting alcohol cue reactivity and delayed gratification in AUD.
• To inform the development of novel clinical treatments for AUD.

Main Methods:

• A meta-analysis using Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE) was conducted.
• The study reviewed existing literature on interventions for alcohol cue reactivity and delay discounting.
• Brain regions associated with each intervention type were identified and compared.

Main Results:

• Interventions for alcohol cue reactivity primarily affected the ventral prefrontal cortex, dorsal anterior cingulate, and temporal, striatal, and thalamic regions.
• Interventions for delayed gratification predominantly engaged midline default mode network regions (posterior cingulate, precuneus, ventromedial prefrontal cortex) and other areas.
• The ventromedial prefrontal cortex showed co-localization for both intervention types, while the posterior cingulate and precuneus were specific to delay-of-gratification.

Conclusions:

• Interventions for both cue reactivity and delay discounting in AUD modulate activity within midline default mode network regions.
• The ventromedial prefrontal cortex is a key overlapping site, while the posterior cingulate/precuneus are important for delay-of-gratification.
• These findings support targeted development of new interventions and treatments for AUD.