COMMON NEURAL SUBSTRATES FOR THE ADDICTIVE PROPERTIES OF NICOTINE ANDCOCAINE

Regional brain activation was assessed by mapping of Fos-related prote in expression in rats trained to self-administration of intravenous ni cotine and cocaine. Both drugs produced specific overlapping patterns of activation in the shell and the core of the nucleus accumbens, medi al prefrontal cortex, and medial caudate areas, but not in the amygdal a. Thus, the reinforcing properties of cocaine and nicotine map on sel ected structures of the terminal fields of the mesocorticolimbic dopam ine system, supporting the idea that common substrates for these addic tive drugs exist.