The van Staaden lab
We are a research group focused on understanding reward systems.
UNDERSTANDING REWARD SYSTEMS
Natural reward systems underly the evolution of behavior at all levels, from the individual to complex societies.
How does reward drive the choices that individuals make? Does the degree to which individual are socially connected exert an influence? How do biological mechanisms contribute to our understanding of natural and drug-sensitive reward? Is addiction really best understood as a hijacking of natural reward pathways?
These are the central questions the van Staaden lab is pursuing, using both humans and the common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster.Send questions and comments to: mvs.bgsu@gmail.com