We examined the effects of discrete, bilateral excitotoxic lesions of the central or basolateral nucleus of the amygdala on naloxone-precipitated withdrawal-induced conditioned place aversion in morphine-dependent rats. Lesions of the central nucleus significantly attenuated the conditioned place aversion, while lesions of the basolateral nucleus had little effect. These results suggest that th...

The amygdala is critical for the production of appropriate responses towards emotional or stressful stimuli. It has a characteristic neuronal activation pattern to acute stressors. Chronic pain and stress have each been shown independently modulate activity amygdala. Few studies investigated effect injury, on stress. This study effects neuropathic injury response an restraint constriction right...

To confirm that an increase in blood pressure induced by ketamine is mediated through the central nervous system, we examined effect of ketamine, applied directly to amygdala, on pressure. Six male Sprague-Dawley rats were used study. Under head-restrained and unanesthetized condition, 0.2 μl (5 mg/ml) was injected around amygdala at a flow rate μl/min glass pipette, recorded while monitoring s...

Associative memory formation is essential for an animal's survival by ensuring adaptive behavioral responses in an ever-changing environment. This is particularly important under conditions of immediate threats such as in fear learning. One of the key brain regions involved in associative fear learning is the amygdala. The basolateral amygdala is the main entry site for sensory information to t...

Why are emotionally arousing experiences well-remembered? Since the amygdala and hippocampus play pivotal roles in emotion and memory, respectively, the interaction between these brain regions may underlie the formation of enhanced memory for emotionally arousing events. Behavioral experiments using animals have demonstrated that lesions of the amygdaloid nuclei or infusions of drugs into the a...

Self-efficacy relates to an individual's perception of their capabilities. It has a clear self-evaluative dimension leading to high or low perceived self-efficacy. Individual differences in perceived self-efficacy have been shown to be better predictors of performance than previous achievement or ability and seem particularly important when individuals face adversity. The study investigated the...

BACKGROUND Exposure to cocaine-associated stimuli triggers a robust rise in circulating glucocorticoid levels. Glucocorticoid receptors are richly expressed in the basolateral amygdala, a brain region that controls the reinstatement of cocaine-seeking behavior upon exposure to a previously cocaine-paired environmental context. In the present study, we investigated whether glucocorticoid recepto...