Stress is a complex experience that carries both aversive and motivating properties. Chronic
stress causes an increase in the risk of depression, is well known to increase relapse of drug …

Stress is most often associated with aversive states. It rapidly induces the release of
hormones and neuropeptides including dynorphin, which activates kappa opioid receptors …

Agonists targeting the kappa opioid receptor (KOR) have been promising therapeutic
candidates because of their efficacy for treating intractable itch and relieving pain. Unlike …

In this review we propose that there are sex differences in how men and women enter onto
the path that can lead to addiction. Males are more likely than females to engage in risky …

Background Initial hypotheses regarding the role of the κ opioid system in drug addiction
suggested that κ receptor stimulation had anti-addictive effects. However, recent research …

Rationale Accumulating evidence indicates that brain kappa-opioid receptors (KORs) and
dynorphin, the endogenous ligand that binds at these receptors, are involved in regulating …

Both the amygdala and the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) have been implicated
in maladaptive anxiety characteristics of anxiety disorders. However, the underlying circuit …

Although stress has profound effects on motivated behavior, the underlying mechanisms
responsible are incompletely understood. In this study we elucidate a functional pathway in …

Since the first description of their opioid properties three decades ago, dynorphins have
increasingly been thought to play a regulatory role in numerous functional pathways of the …

Stress is a complex human experience and having both rewarding and aversive
motivational properties. The adverse effects of stress are well documented, yet many of …