And those impinge on nucleus a commons and increase dopamine levels further . This is what makes the rewarding properties are sometimes referred to as the reinforcing properties of nicotine so powerful . This is why so many billions of people ingest nicotine in one form or another .
Now , here's what's very important nicotine triggers the release of dopamine from the nucleus accumbens . This is what gives nicotine , it's rewarding properties , it increases motivation , it tends to give a not so subtle but very transient increase in feelings of well being and alertness and motivation . And that's because of the increase in dopamine caused by nicotine directly within the nucleus .
This is why so many billions of people ingest nicotine in one form or another . It's also why nicotine is so hard to quit because there's a potent increase in dopamine from multiple neural circuit pathways within this mesolimbic reward circuitry . Now , within the mesolimbic reward circuitry , there's an interesting feature , there are accelerators that essentially push out more dopamine , get more dopamine released and there are breaks of the so called Gaba ergic variety .
And so this is like pushing on the accelerator for dopamine , but also removing the brake . So there's a two pronged effect of nicotine on reinforcement reward , dopamine related pathways , the feel good motivation pathways and that is an increase in dopamine and a decrease in Gaba . And again , that's all mediated through this mesolimbic reward pathway involving the ventral tegmental area and the nucleus accumbens .
So , let's talk about what those effects are . And let's do that by dividing the effects of nicotine into effects on the brain . So everything from the neck up and on the body , the so-called central nervous system and the periphery .
