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Articles on Neurotransmitters

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A better understanding of dopamine could lead to better treatments for neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases, among others. Kateryna Kon/Science Photo Library via Getty Images

Dopamine is a brain chemical famously linked to mood and pleasure − but researchers have found multiple types of dopamine neurons with different functions

From dopamine hacking to dopamine detoxes, some people have sought to harness this brain chemical to improve their mood and productivity. But it’s far more complicated than that.
The microbiome functions as an ‘invisible organ’ but it often makes its presence known by emitting sounds and smells. (Shutterstock)

The nose knows: How microbiomes and the smells they produce help shape behaviour in bugs, birds, beasts and humans

The microbiome and its signature smells are crucial for most organisms, whether human, insect or plant. The silent signals sent by the microbiome are essential communications that influence behaviour.
Opioid neurotransmitters are located in many areas of the body, including the brain, spine and gut. ALIOUI Mohammed Elamine/iStock via Getty Images Plus

Your body naturally produces opioids without causing addiction or overdose – studying how this process works could help reduce the side effects of opioid drugs

Unlike opioid drugs like morphine and fentanyl that travel throughout the body, the opioids your body produces are released in small quantities to specific locations.
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How digital marketing of legal but harmful products escalates health threats to the most vulnerable

So-called ‘limbic capitalism’ uses social media to target the brain’s reward centres. In the process it escalates health threats to the most vulnerable consumers.
Those smiles probably aren’t thanks to tryptophan. Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock.com

Turning to turkey’s tryptophan to boost mood? Not so fast

Tryptophan, found in food, is an important ingredient in the neurotransmitter serotonin. But is that enough to support it as a possible mood booster? The research is decidedly mixed.
One slice is never enough. Radu Bercan/Shutterstock.com

Why does pizza taste so good?

Pizza might seem like a simple food, but it’s uniquely equipped to excite our brains and thrill our taste buds.
Young adults at a tailgate. Young adults are more likely than older adults to binge drink and are at greater risk when they do. Monkey Business ImagesShutterstock.com

Binge drinking and blackouts: Sobering truths about lost learning for college students

A Sept. 14 report on drug use suggested that opioid use has declined. But troubling trends in drinking among teens and young adults stood out. An addiction specialist explains the unique dangers.
Hearing can be affected by loud noises, but the mechanisms have not been fully understood. The auditory nerve plays a big role. 9nang/Shutterstock.com

Some nerves: How loud noise may change hearing

Noise is common, but we don’t fully know what that means for our hearing. A recent study suggests how overstimulation of the auditory nerve may be too much for it to handle.
Some welcome the possibility of drugs altering our brain for the better, others are concerned about altering our brains at all. Andrew Adermark/Flickr

Common drugs can affect our minds and morals – but should we be worried about it?

Scientists seek out drugs to cure what ails us but we now know that some common medications affect our moral capacity. Since it’s happening already, the question is, should we be worried?
Opioid addicts now being armed with overdose antidote. Gretchen Ertl/Reuters

Explainer: naloxone, the antidote to opioid overdose

Many first responders’ – even some university police officers – are carrying a new tool in their first-aid kits. It’s naloxone, the opioid overdose antidote drug, and today it’s more widely available than…

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