Carlo Cifani

TL;DR: In a rat model of context-induced relapse to heroin, a small subset of ventral mPFC neurons formed neuronal ensembles that encode the learned associations between heroin reward and heroin-associated contexts; re-activation of these neurons by drug- associated contexts during abstinence provoked drug relapse.

TL;DR: The inhibition of operant behaviour following blockade of CB1 receptors by SR-141716A is linked to a reduction of reward-related responding and is not related to drug-induced motor deficits, demonstrating that endocannabinoids play a major role in the control of ethanol self-administration and in the reinstatement of conditioned ethanol seeking.

TL;DR: A novel rat model is used, in which the availability of a mutually exclusive palatable food maintains prolonged voluntary abstinence from intravenous methamphetamine self-administration, to demonstrate that the activation of monosynaptic glutamatergic projections from anterior insular cortex to central amygdala is critical to relapse after the cessation of contingency management.

TL;DR: Results indicate, for the first time, a major role of OX1R mechanisms in BE, suggesting that selective antagonism at OX2R could represent a novel pharmacological treatment for BE and possibly other eating disorders with a compulsive component.

TL;DR: An important role of postsynaptic alpha-1 adrenoceptors in stress-induced reinstatement of alcohol and food seeking is demonstrated and is demonstrated to be important in relapse to alcohol use during abstinence or maladaptive eating habits during dieting.