Co-chaired by Markus Heilig, NIAAA and Barry Hoffer, NIDA

Conference Room F1/F2, Natcher Conference Center

The long-lasting changes in the brain that underlie addiction have come under increased scrutiny during the last decade. There is a new understanding that common CNS mechanisms, traditionally thought to underlie adult brain plasticity (e.g., reorganization, learning, memory), may also play a role in the long-term changes manifested as addiction. The speakers in this symposium will describe ongoing research indicating how drugs, stress, and other perturbations elicit such changes.

Program:

A Developmental Perspective on Brain Reward Systems
Dan Hommer, NIAAA

Long-term Neuroadaptations in Alcohol Dependence
Markus Heilig, NIAAA

Stress, CRF, and Addiction
Roy Wise, NIDA

Cannabinoids and Regulation of Transmitter Release
Carl Lupica, NIDA