May 31, 2017

Research [PET] reveals how brain's opioids modulate responses towards other people's pain

The study was conducted by using PET and fMRI. The participants were injected with radioactive compounds that bind to their brain’s opioid and dopamine receptors. Radioactivity in the brain was measured twice with the PET camera to map the distribution of opioid and dopamine receptors. Subsequently, the participants’ brain activity was measured with fMRI while they viewed videos depicting humans in various painful and painless situations. {read more here}