Using lasers to trigger compulsive behavior

The project that we are proposing is inspired by work that we recently published in the Journal of Neuroscience. We demonstrated that by activating a part of the brain called the Central Amygdala, by using laser light with optogenetics, we could make an animal compulsively seek out one sugar pellet over an otherwise identical one.

 

Using this technique, animals came to develop addiction-like preferences (>95%) for pressing on one laser-paired lever, over another identical lever that otherwise delivered the same exact reward.

More recently, we have demonstrated that this induced compulsive preference shares many of the characteristics of addiction. Notably the preference will remain sustained even if the laser-paired lever is associated with:

1) Increasing amounts of footshock

2) Greater effort requirements to get the reward

3) Longer delays to obtain the reward

4) Or if the alternative lever is paired with 10 times more reward

These results lead us to believe that we have uncovered a part of the brain involved in turning otherwise benign choice preferences into risky and problematic preferences that may lead to addictive-like behaviors, for drugs, food or even gambling.

To help better understand these mechanisms we have recently extended the duration of our project by a further 7 days in order to reach our goal and help uncover some of the brain's mysteries!