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HIGHlighted publication

Insula to ventral striatal projections mediate compulsive eating produced by intermittent access to palatable food

Samantha Spierling, Giordano de Guglielmo, Dean Kirson, Alison Kreisler, Marisa Roberto, Olivier George, and Eric Zorrilla

• The insular cortex subserves visceral-emotional functions and, based on its afferent and efferent connections, likely plays a role in the negative reinforcement so important in the compulsive intake of food and drugs characteristic of eating and substance use disorders.

• Female rats were given intermittent access to a highly palatable diet and a subset of rats demonstrated elevated progressive ratio responding, increased punished responding and irritability following withdrawal of the diet, all suggestive of increased compulsive-like behavior.​

HIGHlighted publication

Insula to ventral striatal projections mediate compulsive eating produced by intermittent access to palatable food

Samantha Spierling, Giordano de Guglielmo, Dean Kirson, Alison Kreisler, Marisa Roberto, Olivier George, and Eric Zorrilla

• The insular cortex subserves visceral-emotional functions and, based on its afferent and efferent connections, likely plays a role in the negative reinforcement so important in the compulsive intake of food and drugs characteristic of eating and substance use disorders.

• Female rats were given intermittent access to a highly palatable diet and a subset of rats demonstrated elevated progressive ratio responding, increased punished responding and irritability following withdrawal of the diet, all suggestive of increased compulsive-like behavior.​

HIGHlighted publicationS 

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