Genetics

Gene therapy via skin protects mice from lethal cocaine doses

There are no approved medications to treat either cocaine addiction or overdose. Frequent users tend to become less and less sensitive to the drug, leading to stronger or more frequent doses. The typical result is addiction. ...

Neuroscience

Binge eating may lead to addiction-like behaviors

A history of binge eating -- consuming large amounts of food in a short period of time -- may make an individual more likely to show other addiction-like behaviors, including substance abuse, according to Penn State College ...

Medical research

Caffeine counters cocaine's effects on women's estrus cycles

Women are more sensitive to the effects of cocaine and more susceptible to cocaine abuse than men. Cocaine's ability to disrupt a woman's estrus cycle may explain the sex differences in cocaine addiction, and new evidence ...

Neuroscience

Mechanism links substance abuse with vulnerability to depression

It is well established that a mood disorder can increase an individual's risk for substance abuse, but there is also evidence that the converse is true; substance abuse can increase a person's vulnerability to stress-related ...

Psychology & Psychiatry

Treating addiction by eliminating drug-associated memories

Addicts, even those who have been abstinent for long periods of time, are often still vulnerable to their own memories of prior drug use.  For example, exposure to the same environment in which they commonly used drugs - ...

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