Poppy-cocked

     Experiments on neurons show the ability to control the dopamine response.  This seems quite the breakthrough seeing that the dopamine receptors themselves were only discovered in 1958 by Arvid carlsson.

Artwork by Shirley Novak

Study Shines Light on Brain Mechanism that Controls Reward Enjoyment
Science Daily
by

     "GABA neurons located in the VTA are just microns away from dopamine and are negative regulators of dopamine funtion," Stuber proposes. "When they become active, their basic job is to suppress dopamine release. A dysfunction in these GABA neurons might potentially underlie different aspects of neuropsychiatric illness, such as depression. Thus, we could think of them as a new physiological target for various aspects of neuropsychiatric diseases."

UNC study coauthors include Ruud van Zessen and Jana L. Phillips. 

Coauthor Evgeny A. Budygin is at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. 

Dopamine System in Highly Creative People Similar to That Seen in Schizophrenics, Study Finds

Highlights: "New research shows a possible explanation for the link between mental health and creativity. By studying receptors in the brain, researchers at Karolinska Institutet have managed to show that the dopamine system in healthy, highly creative people is similar in some respects to that seen in people with schizophrenia."



http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/05/100518064610.htm