Self-Administration of Ethanol, Cocaine, or Nicotine Does Not Decrease the Soma Size of Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine Neurons
Mazei-Robison MS, Appasani R, Edwards S, Wee S, Taylor SR, Picciotto MR, Koob GF, Nestler EJ. Self-Administration of Ethanol, Cocaine, or Nicotine Does Not Decrease the Soma Size of Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine Neurons. PLOS ONE 2014, 9: e95962. PMID: 24755634, PMCID: PMC3995955, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0095962.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsVentral tegmental areaSoma sizeDopamine neuronsVentral tegmental area dopamine neuronsChronic opiate administrationAdditional drug classesDrug-specific mannerMorphological changesSelf-administer cocaineOpiate administrationTegmental areaDrug classesDA circuitsMesolimbic DA circuitSelf-AdministrationFiring rateSimilar morphological changesGeneral hallmarkNeuronsNicotineCocaineDrugsRecent findingsPrevious observationsNeuroplasticity