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The nucleus accumbens (NAc or NAcc; also known as the accumbens nucleus, or formerly as the nucleus accumbens septi, Latin for ' nucleus adjacent to the septum ') is a region in the basal forebrain rostral to the preoptic area of the hypothalamus. [1] The nucleus accumbens and the olfactory tubercle collectively form the ventral striatum.
Nucleus accumbens: involved in reward, pleasure, and addiction Diencephalic structures: Hypothalamus : a center for the limbic system, connected with the frontal lobes, septal nuclei, and the brain stem reticular formation via the medial forebrain bundle , with the hippocampus via the fornix, and with the thalamus via the mammillothalamic ...
The inhibition (or hyperpolarization) hypothesis proposes that the nucleus accumbens exerts tonic inhibitory effects on downstream structures such as the ventral pallidum, hypothalamus or ventral tegmental area, and that in inhibiting MSNs in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc), these structures are excited, "releasing" reward related behavior.
Dopaminergic pathways (dopamine pathways, dopaminergic projections) in the human brain are involved in both physiological and behavioral processes including movement, cognition, executive functions, reward, motivation, and neuroendocrine control. [1] Each pathway is a set of projection neurons, consisting of individual dopaminergic neurons.
The mesolimbic pathway, sometimes referred to as the reward pathway, is a dopaminergic pathway in the brain. [ 1 ] The pathway connects the ventral tegmental area in the midbrain to the ventral striatum of the basal ganglia in the forebrain. The ventral striatum includes the nucleus accumbens and the olfactory tubercle.
The nucleus accumbens is located in the ventral striatum and integrates information from cortical and limbic brain structures to mediate behaviors the reinforce reward. [16] It is a major target for the dopaminergic projections from the VTA, a group of neurons located close to the midline on the floor of the midbrain .
These neural fibres connect the septal area in forebrain with medial hypothalamus. The medial forebrain bundle (MFB) is a neural pathway containing fibers from the basal olfactory regions, the periamygdaloid region and the septal nuclei, as well as fibers from brainstem regions, including the ventral tegmental area and nigrostriatal pathway.
The locus coeruleus is activated by stress, and will respond by increasing norepinephrine secretion, which in turn will alter cognitive function (through the prefrontal cortex), increase motivation (through nucleus accumbens), activate the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and increase the sympathetic discharge/inhibit parasympathetic tone ...