The ventral tegmental area (VTA) is a key brain region for dopamine production and the regulation of reward-related behaviors. While dopaminergic neurons have traditionally been considered the primary ...

In a work of systematic biology that advances the field, researchers have identified 16 distinct cell populations in a complex area of the midbrain called the ventral tegmental area, or VTA. The VTA ...

A small region of the brain, known as the ventral tegmental area (VTA), plays a key role in how we process rewards. It produces dopamine, a neuromodulator that helps predict future rewards based on ...

(November 19, 2002) - Bethesda, MD -- We know quite a bit about the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC). It is part of the frontal lobe that lies superior to the orbit of the eyes. This area of the brain plays ...

Using single-nucleus RNA sequencing, the authors map transcriptional changes in the rat ventral tegmental area following chronic inflammatory pain and acute morphine exposure. Notably, their ...

Training people to activate a part of the brain linked to reward and positive expectations may be associated with an increase in the body's immune response to a vaccine. The findings from a study ...