Figure 3.
Exercise, regardless of controllability, activates dopamine neurons in the lateral ventral tegmental area (VTA). A) Figure from the atlas of Paxinos and Watson showing the regions analyzed in the VTA and the substantia nigra (SN). B) Photomicrograph showing tyrosine hydroxylase (TH; light brown) and pCREB (dark brown/black) immunostaining in the lateral VTA (400x magnification). C) Six weeks of voluntary (VR) and forced (FR) running increased the percentage of TH neurons in the lateral VTA that contained pCREB, relative to Locked controls (* p < 0.05 relative to Locked group). Bars represent group means ± SEM.