Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University Neuroscience Institute Dissertations Neuroscience Institute 8-7-2018 Regulation of Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine Neuron Activity by Feeding-related Hypothalamic Neuropeptides Katherine MS West Georgia State University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/neurosci_diss Recommended Citation West, Katherine MS, "Regulation of Ventral Tegmental Area Dopamine Neuron Activity by Feeding-related Hypothalamic Neuropeptides." Dissertation, Georgia State University, 2018. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/neurosci_diss/36 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Neuroscience Institute at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Neuroscience Institute Dissertations by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. REGULATION OF VENTRAL TEGMENTAL AREA DOPAMINE NEURON ACTIVITY BY FEEDING-RELATED HYPOTHALAMIC NEUROPEPTIDES by KATHERINE M. S. WEST Under the Direction of Aaron Roseberry, Ph.D. ABSTRACT The prevalence of obesity has doubled worldwide since the 1980s, and having a high body mass index contributes to more deaths worldwide than being underweight. Over the past 20 years, consumption of calorie-dense foods has increased, and this is considered one of the major causes of the rapid rise in obesity. Thus, understanding the neural control of food intake is important for the development of new and effective treatments of obesity. Two important brain regions that regulate food intake are the hypothalamus and the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system. The hypothalamus is essential for the homeostatic control of feeding and body weight, while the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system, also known as the reward system, is the primary circuit for reward and motivated behavior.