Investigation of kinase/s to determine the catalytic activity of serum- and glucocorticoid- inducible kinase 1 (SGK1) at a site regulated by drugs of abuse
Abstract
Addiction is a serious and chronic disease that causes
alterations in the brain reward circuit, specifically in the
mesolimbic dopamine reward pathway. This pathway
encompasses the ventral tegmental area (VTA), nucleus
accumbens (NAc), medial prefrontal cortex, amygdala
and the hippocampus. Specifically, the VTA-NAc
pathway has been associated with an increase in
activation due to drugs of abuse, such as cocaine and
morphine. Although both of these drugs lead to an
increased activation of this pathway, they act in different
manners. For instance, cocaine binds to dopamine
transporters, preventing the reuptake of dopamine,
permitting it to continually bind to the receptors. This
ultimately leads to continual activation of this pathway,
thereby eliciting a rewarding feeling. On the other hand,
morphine works to decrease the inhibitory response from
interneurons, while increasing the excitatory response.
This leads to the release of more dopamine into the
NAc, producing the same euphoric feeling as cocaine.
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Receptor-interacting serine/threonine-protein kinase 4 (ripk4) induces epidermal differentiation in early zebrafish embryos independently of inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-B kinase subunit 1 (ikk1)
Grzegorski, Steven J. (Kalamazoo College, 2011)The epithelium is the outer most layer of cells responsible for mediating the interactions of an organism with its external environment. Squamous cells are scale-like flattened cells that form the most superficial layer ... -
A Casein Kinase 1 Epsilon Single Nucleotide Polymorphism and Acute Response to Caffeine in Humans
Hyman, David (Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College., 2008)•Recently, mouse studies identified a quantitative trait locus (QTL) on chromosome 15 containing the (mouse) Csnk1e gene that has been linked to cocaine and methamphetamine sensitivity (Jones et al., 1999; Palmer et ... -
Role of Protein Kinase C in the Expression of Inducible Nitric Oxide Synthase in BV-2 Microglial Cells
Lawwell, Leanne (Kalamazoo, Mich. : Kalamazoo College., 2008)Microglial cells activated to produce nitric oxide (•NO) are found localized around Aβ plaques in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients1,2. • The mechanism by which they are activated in the progression of the disease is ...