The pleasure and reward system is one of the most important systems governed by the brain.
It spurs us to enjoy the activities that have contributed to our survival as a species, such as eating, drinking, and having sex, so that we feel motivated to pursue them.
The activity of the reward system, however, is also a key factor in various types of addictive behavior.
Now, a team of researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore — led by Prof. Scott Thompson, Ph.D. — has discovered that brain regions involved in addiction may also play a role in depression, albeit in an opposite way.