Researchers uncover new target of alcohol in the brain

When alcohol enters the brain, it causes neurons in a specialized region called the ventral tegmental area, or VTA — also known as the “pleasure center” — to release dopamine, a neurotransmitter that produces those feel-good sensations, and tells the brain that whatever it just experienced is worth getting more of.

Scientists have long sought the first step in the molecular pathway by which alcohol causes neurons in the VTA to release dopamine.