Unbalanced neuronal circuits in addiction

Through sequential waves of drug-induced neurochemical stimulation, addiction co-opts the brain's neuronal circuits that mediate reward, motivation to behavioral inflexibility and a severe disruption of self-control and compulsive drug intake. Brain imaging technologies have allowed neuroscientists to map out the neural landscape of addiction in the human brain and to understand how drugs modify it.

► Addiction is a spectrum disorder that perturbs the balance within a network of circuits. ► Addiction entails a progressive dysfunction that erodes the foundations of self-control. ► Addiction circuits overlap with the circuits of other impulsivity disorders (e.g. obesity). ► Better understanding of these circuits is the key to better prevention and treatment.