Rat striatal dopamine release mechanisms of cocaine.

Centrally problematic in the study of drugs of abuse is the addictive process itself. Addictive drugs affect dopaminergic nigrostriatal and mesolimbic neuronal circuitry during brain reward. These findings show that cocaine produces a decrease in dopamine release from rat striatum and prevents the surge of dopamine release which occurs post-mortem. The results suggest that dopaminergic control over striatal neuronal membrane may be important in neurochemical mechanisms underlying brain reward.