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Narrator: Methamphetamine is among the most addictive substances in the world.
旁白：甲基苯丙胺幾乎是世界上最容易上癮的物質之一。
Despite the horrors of exploding meth labs, many burn patients still return to meth abuse.
盡管被冰毒實驗室的爆炸所威懾，許多燒傷患者仍然回返至濫用冰毒。
Leading Neuro-pharmacologist, Dr. Edythe London, has spent her entire career trying to figure out why users are so addicted to this drug.
首席神經藥理學家，埃德斯·倫敦博士的整個職業生涯都用于試圖找出吸毒者如此沉迷于這種毒品的原因。
Doctor London: Neuro-pharmacologists are interested in understanding how drugs work, and particularly how medications might work and interact with brain function.
倫敦博士：神經藥理學家的關注點在于毒品是如何發揮作用的，尤其是其藥物機制如何，以及其與腦功能的相互作用。
Narrator: Maggie Lavalle is a member of Dr. London's meth study.
旁白：瑪吉·拉瓦列是倫敦博士冰毒研究的一員。
Maggie: Well a typical week if I'm a full and flourished meth addict, I can go anywhere from, I can smoke anywhere from $200 worth of meth to $400 worth of meth. Out of my mind.
瑪吉：嗯，我是一個徹底的、活躍的冰毒癮君子，這就是典型的一周，我可以去任何地方，我可以在任何地方吸食冰毒，從200美元到400元不等。我瘋掉了。
Doctor London: Go and close your eyes for me for a second.
倫敦博士：進去閉一會眼睛。
Narrator: The volunteers undergo a series of PET scans that produce images that allow Dr London to look inside the brain and analyse the drug's effects.
旁白：志愿者接受了一系列PET掃描，倫敦博士通過產生的影像來透視大腦并借此分析毒品的作用。
Methamphetamine causes the brain to release chemical messengers called 'neurotransmitters' that make us think, feel and behave in a particular way.
甲基苯丙胺致使大腦釋放化學信使，即“神經遞質”讓我們以特定的方式來思考、感知和行為。
Dr London: One of the neurotransmitters that's primarily affected by methamphetamine is dopamine.
倫敦博士：受甲基苯丙胺影響的主要神經遞質之一是多巴胺。
Now we think of dopamine as the pleasure transmitter.
現在，我們認為多巴胺是愉悅感遞質。
Narrator: Many narcotics stimulate a flow of dopamine to the brain.
旁白：許多麻醉藥刺激多巴胺流向大腦。
But methamphetamine floods the brain up to 1200% more than normal.
但是，流入大腦的甲基苯丙胺比正常高至1200%。
Dr. London: There is a huge release of dopamine and that produces a feeling of intense euphoria.
倫敦博士：多巴胺的巨量釋放產生了強烈的愉悅感。
It also produces feelings of competence.
它也產生了勝任感。
Narrator: But the areas receiving these chemical messages, the dopamine receptors, are damaged by toxins in the methamphetamine.
旁白：但是接收這些化學信使的區域，多巴胺受體，被甲基苯丙胺中的毒素所損傷。
Over long term use, the receptors begin to fail.
經過長期的使用，受體開始衰竭。
Meth addicts may have up to 16% fewer dopamine receptors than a normal brain.
冰毒癮君子大腦中的多巴胺受體數量比正常人少至16%。
Doctor London: We've recently shown that the level of dopamine activity in the brain is highly correlated with impulsivity.
倫敦博士：我們最近的研究顯示大腦中多巴胺活動的水平與沖動行為高度相關。
The fewer dopamine receptors the more impulsive a person is.
多巴胺受體數量越少，人就越沖動。
So dopamine in the methamphetamine abuser is very much linked to self-control.
所以，甲基安非他明濫用者腦中的多巴胺與自我控制密切相關。
