Louk Vanderschuren
Position: Professor of Neurobiology of Behavior
E-mail: l.j.m.j.vanderschuren@umcutrecht.nl
Phone: +31 (0)88 7568811
Phone secretariat: +31 (0)88 7568847
My research focuses on the neurobiology of drug addiction, social behavior and impulsivity. The main aim of this research is to understand the neural basis of emotion, motivation and affect. In particular, we strive to elucidate 1. how dysfunction of these neural circuits underlies drug addiction, 2. the neural underpinnings of the positive emotions associated with affiliative social interaction, 3. how deficits in social capacities predispose to drug addiction and impulse control disorders.
RESEARCH
The neurobiology of drug addiction
This research focuses on the neurobehavioral differences between casual drug use and drug addiction. In humans, drug addiction is characterized by compulsive drug use, that persists despite considerable cost to the addict. Moreover, even after prolonged abstinence, former addicts run a great risk of relapsing to drug abuse. There is a wealth of evidence to show that drug exposure results in an array of neuroadaptive changes, many of which remain present- or only appear- after cessation of drug exposure. These neuroadaptations may be particularly apparent in individuals that are vulnerable because of their genetic make-up or traumatic life-events. Drug-induced long-lasting changes in the function of the limbic corticostriatal circuits are thought to underlie emotional changes, impulse control deficits and compulsive aspects of drug use associated with addiction. We aim to identify the genetic, neural and behavioral underpinnings of these core features of addiction, which may ultimately contribute to the development of novel pharmacotherapies for this disorder.
The neurobiology of social behavior and impulsivity
This line of research investigates the neurobiology of social play behavior, which is a highly vigorous form of social interaction, displayed by most mammalian species inbetween weaning and puberty. Social play behavior is a natural reinforcer and it is of critical importance for social and cognitive development. Interestingly, although abnormal social behavior is a core symptom of disorders like schizophrenia, autism and antisocial personality disorders, the neurobiology of social behavior remains a relatively unexplored issue. In addition, antisocial personality traits, that often occur together with with impulse control deficits, are known predispose to the development of drug addiction. Therefore, we also investigate whether differences in the social capacities of rats predict the sensitivity to drug addiction and impulsive behavior.
RECENT KEY PUBLICATIONS
1: Trezza V, Vanderschuren LJMJ (2008) Bidirectional cannabinoid modulation of social behavior in adolescent rats. Psychopharmacology 197:217-227
2: Pattij T, Vanderschuren LJMJ (2008) The neuropharmacology of impulsive behavior. Trends Pharmacol. Sci. 29:192-199
3: Van Gaalen MM, Van Koten R, Schoffelmeer ANM, Vanderschuren LJMJ (2006) Critical involvement of dopaminergic neurotransmission in impulsive decision-making. Biol. Psychiatry 60:66-73
4: Vanderschuren LJMJ, Di Ciano P, Everitt BJ (2005) Involvement of the dorsal striatum in cue-controlled cocaine seeking. J. Neurosci. 25:8665-8670
5: Vanderschuren LJMJ, Everitt BJ (2004) Drug seeking becomes compulsive after prolonged cocaine self-administration. Science 305:1017-1019
