title: Alcohol-related olfactory cues activate the nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental area in high-risk drinkers: preliminary findings.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The mesocorticolimbic dopamine system is implicated in motivation and reward and may be involved in the development of alcoholism.
  
  
  METHODS
  We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to study the blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) response to alcohol-related olfactory stimuli (AROS; odors of beer and whiskey) and non-alcohol-related olfactory stimuli (NAROS; odors of grass and leather) in 10 high-risk (HR) drinkers (average drinks per week, 19.99; SD, 6.99; all with > or = 2 first- or second-degree alcoholic relatives) and 5 low-risk (LR) social drinking controls (drinks per week, 2.82; SD, 2.87; 1 subject had 1 second-degree alcoholic relative). Data were analyzed with SPM99 and random effects analysis by using regions of interest and corrected cluster statistics (p < 0.05) to focus on the nucleus accumbens (NAc) and ventral tegmental area (VTA).
  
  
  RESULTS
  In HR subjects, there was a greater BOLD signal increase in the NAc during AROS than during clean air. BOLD signal increases during AROS were also greater in the NAc than the signal increases induced by NAROS. The AROS signal was significantly greater than the NAROS signal in a small number of voxels in the VTA. Finally, the AROS/NAROS difference signal was larger in HR drinkers in both the NAc and VTA.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Alcoholic olfactory cues may invoke the dopaminergic mesocorticolimbic system to a greater degree than nonalcoholic odors and could be effective tools in exploring the role of the dopamine system in susceptibility to alcoholism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, Indiana 46202, USA. dkareken@iupui.edu
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Kareken
authors.forename: Eric D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Claus
authors.forename: Merav
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sabri
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dzemidzic
authors.forename: Ann E K
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Kosobud
authors.forename: Alexander J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Radnovich
authors.forename: Dwight
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hector
authors.forename: Vijay A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Ramchandani
authors.forename: Sean J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: O'Connor
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lowe
authors.forename: Ting-Kai
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000378:metabolism*; D003463:Cues; D006801:Humans; D009714:Nucleus Accumbens / Q000378:metabolism*; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology*; D017557:Ventral Tegmental Area / Q000378:metabolism*