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Click this link to read an article (on my website) explaining the reward system: https://neuroscientificallychallenged.com/posts/know-your-brain-reward-system
TRANSCRIPT:
Welcome to 2 Minute Neuroscience, where I explain neuroscience topics simply in 2 minutes or less. In this part, I will discuss the reward system.
The reward system is a group of structures that are activated whenever we experience something rewarding, such as taking an addictive drug. When faced with a rewarding stimulus, the brain responds by increasing the release of the neurotransmitter dopamine. Structures considered part of the reward system are therefore found along the brain's major dopamine pathways. The pathway most commonly associated with reward is the mesolimbic dopamine pathway, which begins in an area of the brain stem called the ventral tegmental area (VTA). The VTA is one of the brain's major dopamine-producing areas, and the mesolimbic dopamine pathway connects it to the nucleus accumbens, a nucleus in a part of the brain strongly associated with motivation and reward called the ventral striatum.
When we take an addictive drug or experience something rewarding, dopamine neurons in the VTA are activated. These neurons project to the nucleus accumbens via the mesolimbic dopamine pathway, and their activation leads to an increase in dopamine levels in the nucleus accumbens.
Another important dopamine pathway, the mesocortical pathway, also originates in the VTA but runs to the cerebral cortex, more specifically to the frontal lobes. It is also activated during rewarding experiences and is considered part of the reward system.
Because dopamine is released when we take an addictive drug, researchers initially thought that dopamine must be the neurotransmitter that causes pleasure. However, recent research suggests that dopamine activity is not directly correlated with pleasure. For example, dopamine neurons are activated before a reward is actually received and thus pleasure is felt. For this (and other) reasons, dopamine is now thought to have functions other than causing pleasure, such as giving meaning to environmental stimuli associated with rewards and increasing the desire for rewards.
Whatever the exact role of dopamine in reward, the mesolimbic dopamine pathway is constantly activated during rewarding experiences, which is why it is considered the main structure of the reward system. Regardless, the actual network of brain structures involved in mediating reward is much larger and more complex than just this dopamine pathway, and includes many other brain regions and neurotransmitters.
REFERENCES:
Berridge KC. The debate over the role of dopamine in reward: arguments for incentive salience. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2007 Apr;191(3):391-431. Epub 2006 Oct 27.
Wise RA (1998). Activation of brain reward pathways by drugs. Drug and alcohol dependence, 51(1-2): 13-22.
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