New research revealed a surprising pathway that shows alcohol byproducts travel to the brain to promote addiction memory. They show how acetate travels to the brain's learning system and directly alters proteins the regulate DNA function, impacting how some genes are expressed and ultimately affecting how mice behave when given environmental cues to consume alcohol.
Read moreA seven-year project monitoring illicit drug use in 37 countries via wastewater samples shows that cocaine use was skyrocketing in Europe in 2017 and Australia had a serious problem with methamphetamine.
Read moreMedical researchers have demonstrated how estrogen — a natural hormone produced in the body — can be polymerized into a slow-releasing biomaterial and applied to nervous system cells to protect those cells and even promote regeneration.
Read moreA compound effective in killing chemotherapy-resistant glioblastoma-initiating cells (GICs) has been identified, raising hopes of producing drugs capable of eradicating refractory tumors with low toxicity.
Read moreDoes yo-yo dieting drive compulsive eating? There may be a connection. According to researchers the chronic cyclic pattern of overeating followed by undereating, reduces the brain's ability to feel reward and may drive compulsive eating. This finding suggests that future research into treatment of compulsive eating behavior should focus on rebalancing the mesolimbic dopamine system — the part of the brain responsible for feeling reward or pleasure.
Read moreDrug addiction is a vicious cycle of reward and withdrawal. Chronic users often relapse because of the unpleasant physical and psychological symptoms they experience when they stop taking the drug. Now, researchers report metabolic changes in the brains of rats during methamphetamine self-administration and withdrawal that could help identify biomarkers and treatments for addiction.
Read morePeople suffering from opioid addiction and chronic pain may have fewer cravings and less pain if they use both mindfulness techniques and medication for opioid dependence, according to researchers.
Read moreHigh schools in the San Francisco Bay area are being contaminated by plastics and toxic litter from e-cigarettes, cannabis products and combustible tobacco products such as cigarettes and cigarillos, a new study has found.
Read moreConcerns over the opioid epidemic have sparked a strong scientific interest in why some people become addicted while others don't. Now, researchers are proposing novel treatment strategies that could help prevent abuse of opioids and other substances.
Read moreA test to detect opioid drugs in exhaled breath has been developed by engineers and physicians. A breath test could be useful in caring for chronic pain patients as well as for checking for illegal drug use.
Read more