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Abstract #4459

Neural Underpinning from Goal-Directed Drug Seeking to Dysfunctional Stimulus-Response Habit: Increased Nucleus Accumbens Caudate Connectivity in Heroin Addicts

Alexander D. Cohen1, Chunming Xie2, Wenjun Li1, Theodore Tianrun Zhang1, Zheng Yang3, Shi Jiang Li1

1Biophysics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States; 2Biophysics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee , WI, United States; 3Beijing Institute of Basic Medical Science, Beijing, China


This abstract compares resting state functional connectivity (FC) in heroin addicts to matched-control subjects using the nucleus accumbens (NAc) as a seed in an attempt to better understand the underlying processes of addiction. Correlation values were obtained for each subject on a voxelwise basis in 13 addiction associated regions, and then compared via t-test between groups. Increased positive correlation was seen in the left insula, left precuneus, left posterior cingulate cortex, and bilateral caudate body in heroin subjects vs. controls. These results suggest increased NAc caudate connectivity may underlie the shift from goal directed to habitual behavior in drug addiction.