Question

1. do you think that shopping, smoking, and gambling may activate the reward pathway and lead to addiction for some people? 8. how do you think addiction will affect the amount of dopamine in the brain? increase, decrease or stay the same? 9. rat brains also have a reward pathway. scientists use rats to study the effects of the reward pathway. why do you think they would use rats instead of people when conducting research on the effects of drugs on the brain?

Explanation:

1. Addiction can alter dopamine - related neural processes. In addiction, the brain's reward system becomes dysregulated. For substances or behaviors like shopping, smoking, and gambling, repeated exposure can lead to changes in dopamine release and reuptake. Initially, these activities may cause a large release of dopamine, creating a pleasurable feeling. Over time, the brain may adapt, requiring more of the activity or substance to achieve the same dopamine - induced pleasure, thus affecting dopamine levels in the brain either by increasing tolerance (requiring more for the same effect) or by causing long - term changes in the reward pathway that can lead to decreased dopamine function during normal states.
2. Rats are often used in research on the effects of the reward pathway instead of people for several reasons. Ethical considerations are a major factor. Conducting certain types of invasive or potentially harmful experiments on humans is not allowed. Rats have a relatively simple nervous system compared to humans, yet they share many physiological and neurological similarities, especially in the basic structure and function of the reward pathway. They also have a short life - cycle, are easy to breed and maintain in a laboratory setting, and their behavior can be easily observed and measured in response to different stimuli related to the reward pathway.

Answer:

1. Addiction can affect dopamine levels in the brain by initially causing a large release, and over time, the brain may adapt, either increasing tolerance or causing long - term changes in the reward pathway that can lead to decreased dopamine function during normal states.
2. Ethical considerations (inability to conduct invasive or harmful experiments on humans), physiological and neurological similarities to humans in the reward pathway, simple nervous system, short life - cycle, ease of breeding and maintenance, and ease of observing and measuring behavior are the reasons rats are used instead of people for research on the effects of the reward pathway.