Alcoholism can be characterized as a chronic relapsing brain disorder. The pathogenesis of alcoholism is driven by both positive and negative affective states, which promote alcohol drinking, most likely due to allostatic adaptations in specific brain circuitry (Koob, 2003; Koob & Kreek, 2007; Pandey, 2004). This leads to a recurrent compulsion to consume alcohol and ultimately to a loss of control over intake, arising due to the development of a negative emotional state during withdrawal. This has been referred to as the “dark side of addiction”, that ultimately results to maintenance of addiction (Koob & Le Moal, 2005; Koob, 2013).
