Unraveling the Fear factory
Researchers at the RIKEN Center for Brain Science have discovered a circuit in the brain that is necessary for unlearning fear.
Published in Nature Communications, the study details the role of dopamine in ensuring that rats stop being afraid when there isn’t anything to be afraid of anymore.
Team leader Joshua Johansen said: “Pharmacologically targeting the dopamine system will likely be an effective therapy for psychiatric conditions such as anxiety disorders when combined with clinically proven behavioral treatments such as exposure therapy.”
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