It is frequently said that addiction occurs when drugs “hijack” the brain. It’s hard to nail down what that means, but it does rightly suggest that there is an involuntary takeover of the brain that ...

Nicotine addiction remains one of the most persistent public health challenges worldwide, driven by changes in the brain that ...

Explore the connections between the world of neuroscience and nuances of substance use disorders with our inaugural episode of In Such a Place. We’ll speak with Dr. Anna Radke, a leading expert in the ...

"Most of the studies on nicotine addiction traditionally focus on neurons, while neglecting the role of glial cells. Our innovative study demonstrates that astrocytes interact with neurons within the ...

Editor's Note: The graphic at the end of this segment used imprecise terminology. The Legal Action Center survey referred to “substance use disorder.” This week, we are reporting on some promising ...

Ramirez is an associate professor of psychological and brain sciences at Boston University. When philosophers imagined the ship of Theseus, they asked: Can a vessel that has all its planks replaced ...

Remarkable scientific progress over the past five decades has helped us develop knowledge of how drugs of abuse induce pleasure, reinforce use, and lead to the compulsive self-administration we call ...

We usually don't think much about it, but our brain is pretty amazing! This three-pound organ is in charge of everything—from our thoughts and memories to our emotions and decision-making. And yet, ...

Some lessons we learn the hard way, as individuals and as a society. Early in her career, Dr. Anna Lembke says she made some mistakes treating patients because she “didn’t know anything about ...

Breaking free from cigarettes doesn’t require willpower alone. The human brain possesses remarkable plasticity that allows for complete rewiring of smoking associations, transforming a deeply ...