Cocaine | Addiction Treatment Strategies

New research findings suggest that structural
abnormalities in the brains of cocaine addicts are related
in part to drug use and in part to a predisposition toward
addiction

A memory-boosting medication paired with behavioral
therapy might help addicts stay clean, according to new
animal research in the Aug. 4 issue ofÊThe Journal of
Neuroscience. The study suggests D-cycloserine, previously
used in the lab to treat fear and anxiety disorders, could
help an addict resist drugs even when confronted with
drug-related cues outside of rehab. ÊSubstance abusers
have high rates of relapse, often falling back into old
habits only days after they Òquit.Ó Addictive
substances are difficult to resist in part because a
single environmental cue, such as a drug-related sight or
smell, can trigger cravings. In…

New research sheds light on how cocaine regulates gene
expression in a crucial reward region of the brain to
elicit long-lasting changes in behavior. The study,
published by Cell Press in the May 14th issue of the
journalÊNeuron, provides exciting insight into the
molecular pathways regulated by cocaine and may lead to
new strategies for battling drug addiction. ÊIt is well
established that addictive drugs induce persistent changes
in the brainÕs reward circuits. Previous research
has indicated that addiction to drugs such as cocaine is
associated with altered gene expression in the nucleus
accumbens (NAc), a region of the brain that…

People who have used cocaine run a great risk of becoming
addicted, even after long drug-free periods. Now
researchers at Link?ping University and their colleagues
can point to a specific molecule in the brain as a
possible target for treatment to prevent relapses. Drugs
are addictive because they ÒhijackÓ the
brainÕs reward system, which is actually intended to
make it pleasurable to eat and have sex, behaviors that
are necessary for survival and reproduction. This
ÒhijackingÓ is extremely long-lived and often
leads to relapses into abuse, especially when the
individual is exposed to stimuli in the…

Addictive drugs are known to induce changes in the
brainÕs reward circuits that may underlie drug
craving and relapse after long periods of abstinence. Now,
new research, published by Cell Press in the September 9
issue of the journalÊNeuron,Êuncovers a specific neural
mechanism that may be linked to persistent drug-seeking
behavior and could help to guide strategies for
development of new therapies for cocaine addiction.
Previous research has shown that the ventral tegmental
area (VTA) is a brain region that is activated when
cocaine users experience a craving for cocaine after being
exposed to cocaine-associated cues. The medial…

ÊÑ New discoveries by researchers at the University of
Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) offer potential for development
of a first-ever pharmacological treatment for cocaine
addiction. ÊA common beta blocker, propranolol, currently
used to treat people with hypertension and anxiety, has
shown to be effective in preventing the brain from
retrieving memories associated with cocaine use in
animal-addiction models, according to Devin Mueller, UWM
assistant professor of psychology and a co-author with
James Otis of the research. This is the first time that a
therapeutic treatment has been shown to block the
retrieval of memories associated with…

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have identified
abnormal brain structures in the frontal lobe of cocaine
usersÕ brains which are linked to their compulsive
cocaine-using behaviour. Their findings were published
today, 21 June, in the journal Brain. Led by Dr Karen
Ersche, the Cambridge researchers scanned the brains of
120 people, half of whom had a dependence on cocaine. They
found that the cocaine users had widespread loss of grey
matter that was directly related to the duration of their
cocaine abuse (i.e. the longer they had been using
cocaine, the greater the loss of grey matter), and that
this reduction in volume was…

Mount Sinai researchers have discovered how cocaine
corrupts the brain and becomes addictive. These findings
Ñ the first to connect activation of specific
neurons to alterations in cocaine reward Ñ were
published inÊScienceÊon October 15. The results may help
researchers in developing new ways of treating those
addicted to the drug. Led by Mary Kay Lobo, PhD,
Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Neuroscience at
Mount Sinai School of Medicine and first author of the
study, researchers found that the two main neurons (D1 and
D2) in the nucleus accumbens region of the brain, an
important part of the brainÕs reward…