How central is dopamine to pathological gambling or gambling disorder?

Potenza, Marc N.

doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2013.00206

Cited by 97 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…However, to our knowledge, this is the first report of heightened reward responses among cannabis-dependent adults. In our primary analyses (which combined $1 and $5 trials for wins and losses), we did not observe blunted VS activations during reward anticipation as has been seen in individuals with other addictive disorders, e.g., cocaine abuse (Goldstein et al, 2007), alcohol dependence (Wrase et al, 2007; Beck et al, 2009), nicotine dependence (Peters et al, 2011), pathological gambling (Balodis et al, 2012; Donovan et al, 2012) – although not always consistently (Rogers and Robbins, 2001; van Holst and Schilt, 2011; Potenza, 2013). In contrast, our exploratory, post-hoc comparisons found increases in VS activity during reward and loss anticipation for $1 and $5, respectively, among cannabis-dependent individuals.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 47%

Pretreatment measures of brain structure and reward-processing brain function in cannabis dependence: An exploratory study of relationships with abstinence during behavioral treatment1

Yip

DeVito

Kober

et al. 2014

Drug and Alcohol Dependence

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Background Cannabis is widely abused, and efficacies of therapeutics for cannabis dependence remain suboptimal. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) may aid in the identification of biological markers for successful treatment outcomes (i.e., abstinence). Methods Twenty men with cannabis dependence and twenty non-substance-using healthy comparison (HC) men underwent MRI scanning. Cannabis-dependent individuals then participated in a 12-week randomized clinical trial of behavioral treatments (contingency management (CM), cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or both). Pretreatment functional and structural data were compared between the cannabis-dependent and HC participants. In addition, individuals with cannabis dependence were subdivided based on the successful achievement of 21 days of consecutive abstinence during treatment to assess whether abstinent versus nonabstinent cannabis-dependent participants displayed different pretreatment functional and structural characteristics when compared to HC participants. Results In comparison to HC participants, cannabis-dependent participants demonstrated greater ventral striatal activation during the receipt of losing outcomes and smaller putamenal volumes. Cannabis-dependent participants who did not subsequently achieved 21 days of consecutive abstinence had increased activity within the striatum during the receipt of losing outcomes, relative to HC participants. Cannabis-dependent participants who did not achieve 21 days of abstinence had decreased bilateral putamen volumes prior to treatment, relative to HC participants. Conclusions Individual differences in pretreatment striatal function and structure may relate to individual differences in treatment responses for cannabis dependence. While mechanisms underlying these associations require further exploration, the striatum might mediate treatment responses via its role in associative reward-learning (e.g., through skills training in CBT or reinforcement of abstinence in CM).

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 47%

Pretreatment measures of brain structure and reward-processing brain function in cannabis dependence: An exploratory study of relationships with abstinence during behavioral treatment1

Yip

DeVito

Kober

et al. 2014

Drug and Alcohol Dependence

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“…One should also emphasize that the role of dopamine in pathological gambling has been hotly debated in recent years, due to the accumulation of inconsistent and null findings (Linnet, 2013;Potenza, 2013). For instance, pharmacological studies have shown that dopamine-enhancing and dopamine-blocking agents have intriguingly similar effects on gambling behavior in pathological gamblers Poulos, 2004,2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Amplified Striatal Responses to Near-Miss Outcomes in Pathological Gamblers

Sescousse

Janssen

Hashemi

et al. 2016

Neuropsychopharmacol

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Near-misses in gambling games are losing events that come close to a win. Near-misses were previously shown to recruit reward-related brain regions including the ventral striatum, and to invigorate gambling behavior, supposedly by fostering an illusion of control. Given that pathological gamblers are particularly vulnerable to such cognitive illusions, their persistent gambling behavior might result from an amplified striatal sensitivity to near-misses. In addition, animal studies have shown that behavioral responses to near-miss-like events are sensitive to dopamine, but this dopaminergic influence has not been tested in humans. To investigate these hypotheses, we recruited 22 pathological gamblers and 22 healthy controls who played a slot machine task delivering wins, near-misses and full-misses, inside an fMRI scanner. Each participant played the task twice, once under placebo and once under a dopamine D2 receptor antagonist (sulpiride 400 mg), in a doubleblind, counter-balanced design. Participants were asked about their motivation to continue gambling throughout the task. Across all participants, near-misses elicited higher motivation to continue gambling and increased striatal responses compared with full-misses. Crucially, pathological gamblers showed amplified striatal responses to near-misses compared with controls. These group differences were not observed following win outcomes. In contrast to our hypothesis, sulpiride did not induce any reliable modulation of brain responses to near-misses. Together, our results demonstrate that pathological gamblers have amplified brain responses to near-misses, which likely contribute to their persistent gambling behavior. However, there is no evidence that these responses are influenced by dopamine. These results have implications for treatment and gambling regulation. INTRODUCTIONPathological gambling is a behavioral addiction with dramatic consequences including bankruptcy, unemployment, and relationship problems. The prevalence among college students has risen sharply in the past 10 years (Nowak and Aloe, 2014), while the rate of attempted suicide, approaching 20%, is higher than for any other addictive disorder (Bischof et al, 2015). Central to pathological gambling is the loss of control over gambling behavior and the inability to stop playing. This compulsive behavior is postulated to be fueled by cognitive distortions regarding the game structure. One example is the misappraisal of nearmiss events-losing outcomes that come close to a winwhich invigorate ongoing gambling behavior, conceivably by fostering an illusion of control (Clark, 2010). Although the behavioral vulnerability of pathological gamblers to such cognitive distortions is well established (Michalczuk et al, 2011), the underlying neural and neurochemical mechanisms remain elusive. We aimed to address this question using a combination of fMRI and pharmacological manipulation.Near-miss events are a hallmark of many gambling games and are particularly frequent in slot machines, which are recogniz...

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“…69,77,78 While no significant between-group differences in D2/D3 receptor availability at resting state was observed, among disordered gamblers dopamine receptor availability was negatively correlated with mood-related impulsivity (“urgency”) within the striatum 77 and positively correlated with problem-gambling severity within the dorsal striatum. 78 The precise role for dopamine in gambling disorder continues to be debated, 79 but a model based on studies in rats and humans suggests different roles for D2, D3, and D4 dopamine receptors, with D3 receptors in the substantia nigra correlating with problem-gambling severity and impulsivity, and linked to greater dopamine release in the dorsal striatum. 78,80–82 …”

Section: Data Linking Behavioral and Substance Addictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…86,87 These findings, in conjunction with those showing the induction of gambling urges by drugs promoting and blocking D2-like dopamine receptor activity, 88,89 have raised questions regarding the centrality of dopamine to disordered gambling. 79 Nonetheless, recent data suggest that dissecting the inputs from D2, D3, and D4 receptors might elucidate dopamine’s role in the pathophysiology of disordered gambling. 80,82 …”

Section: Data Linking Behavioral and Substance Addictionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gambling Disorder and Other Behavioral Addictions

Yau

Potenza

2015

Harvard Review of Psychiatry

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Addiction professionals and the public are recognizing that certain nonsubstance behaviors—such as gambling, Internet use, video-game playing, sex, eating, and shopping—bear resemblance to alcohol and drug dependence. Growing evidence suggests that these behaviors warrant consideration as nonsubstance or “behavioral” addictions and has led to the newly introduced diagnostic category “Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders” in DSM-5. At present, only gambling disorder has been placed in this category, with insufficient data for other proposed behavioral addictions to justify their inclusion. This review summarizes recent advances in our understanding of behavioral addictions, describes treatment considerations, and addresses future directions. Current evidence points to overlaps between behavioral and substance-related addictions in phenomenology, epidemiology, comorbidity, neurobiological mechanisms, genetic contributions, responses to treatments, and prevention efforts. Differences also exist. Recognizing behavioral addictions and developing appropriate diagnostic criteria are important in order to increase awareness of these disorders and to further prevention and treatment strategies.

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How central is dopamine to pathological gambling or gambling disorder?

Cited by 97 publications

References 61 publications

Pretreatment measures of brain structure and reward-processing brain function in cannabis dependence: An exploratory study of relationships with abstinence during behavioral treatment1

Pretreatment measures of brain structure and reward-processing brain function in cannabis dependence: An exploratory study of relationships with abstinence during behavioral treatment1

Amplified Striatal Responses to Near-Miss Outcomes in Pathological Gamblers

Gambling Disorder and Other Behavioral Addictions

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