BDNF and DeltaFosB
Does anyone here know anything about the relationship (if any) between BDNF and Delta FosB? It's my understanding that both are proteins that play roles in addiction. My web site draws a lot of recovering porn addicts. Several have noticed that giving up porn use is tough because each orgasm throws them back into intense cravings for more...and fantasies or porn are the easiest ways for their brains to "self-medicate" the uncomfortable withdrawal. However, when they "reboot" by abstaining from orgasm for about two months, there's a shift. The occasional orgasm doesn't throw them back into the cycle. I read that, in addicts, Delta FosB (which has promoted addiction relapse in mice addicted to exercise...another behavioral addiction) apparently clears out of the reward circuitry after 1-2 months. I'm curious if BDNF changes might potentially also play a role in the brain's return to equilibrium, just as it does in addictions. (