Framework for developing a hierarchical model of reward focusing on the nucleus accumbens

Computational modeling using GENESIS platform has led to advances in fabricating a model to test the influence of molecular/proteomic adaptations on behavior due to reward. The nucleus accumbens is an area of the brain that processes information from other parts of the brain and is an integral element of the ´reward pathway´ in the brain. A simplified model of the accumbens using one neuron is developed as part of a larger effort to study reward and chemical dependency with a focus on cocaine addiction. A preliminary model of a biologically realistic neuron was developed with inhibitory and excitatory afferents as well as intrasynapse dynamics. The neuron displayed characteristic behavior of a neuron found in the nucleus accumbens including bistability. The neuron has afferents from other neurons via dendrites which carry the inputs relating to behavioral aspects and to learning. To add behavioral aspects to the model, a methodology is developed to model contexts and their reinforcing effects on behavior, similar to cocaine addiction. Results using both the biological and behavioral modeling are encouraging for this preliminary model.