In a major breakthrough, an international team of scientists has proven that addiction to morphine and heroin can be blocked, while at the same time increasing pain relief.
Aug 14, 2012
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A team of neuroscientists at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) has identified changes in the activity of brain cells known as pyramidal neurons, which contribute to drug seeking in a preclinical model of opioid ...
May 13, 2023
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Substance use disorder (SUD) is an extremely difficult disorder to overcome, and many individuals with SUD return to regular use after repeated attempts to quit.
Feb 25, 2023
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A monoclonal antibody that targets heroin is effective in blocking the psychoactive and lethal effects of this drug of abuse in mice—offering a new strategy for heroin addiction and overdose treatment, according to a new ...
Oct 26, 2022
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White matter in the brain that was previously implicated in animal studies has now been suggested to be specifically impaired in the brains of people with addiction to cocaine or heroin, according to a study conducted by ...
Oct 6, 2022
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Less than half of Americans who received treatment for opioid use disorder over a five-year period were offered a potentially lifesaving medication, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and ...
May 10, 2022
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Adults who have at some time in their life used psilocybin—a psychedelic substance produced by some types of mushrooms—are 30% less likely to have opioid use disorder, according to a nationally representative survey of ...
Apr 7, 2022
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Heroin-addicted individuals have alterations in the expression a gene called FYN—a gene known to regulate the production of Tau, a protein that is highly elevated and implicated in neurocognitive disorders like Alzheimer's ...
Sep 15, 2020
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Together with colleagues from Shanghai, Brussels, Canada and the USA, researchers from the University of Bonn have uncovered the binding mechanism of an important pain receptor. The results facilitate the development of new ...
Nov 27, 2019
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Two discoveries—one in the brains of people with heroin addiction and the other in the brains of sleepy mice—shed light on chemical messengers in the brain that regulate sleep and addiction, UCLA researchers say.
Jun 27, 2018
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Heroin (diacetylmorphine (INN)), also known as diamorphine (BAN), or, especially in older literature, as morphine diacetate, is an opioid analgesic synthesized from morphine, a derivative of the opium poppy. When used in medicine it is typically used to treat severe pain, such as that resulting from a heart attack. It is the 3,6-diacetyl ester of morphine, and functions as a morphine prodrug (meaning that it is metabolically converted to morphine inside the body). The white crystalline form considered "pure heroin" is usually the hydrochloride salt, diacetylmorphine hydrochloride. When heroin is supplied illegally, though, it is often adulterated to a freebase form, dulling the sheen and consistency to a matte white powder. As of 2004, roughly 87% of the world supply of opium and its derivatives, including heroin, was thought to be produced in Afghanistan. However, production in Mexico has risen six-fold from 2007 to 2011, changing that percentage and placing Mexico as the second largest opium producer in the world.
As with other opioids, diacetylmorphine is used as both an analgesic and a recreational drug. Frequent and regular administration is associated with tolerance and physical dependence, which may develop into addiction. Internationally, diacetylmorphine is controlled under Schedules I and IV of the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. It is illegal to manufacture, possess, or sell diacetylmorphine without a license in almost every country.
Under the chemical names diamorphine and diacetylmorphine, heroin is a legally prescribed controlled drug in the United Kingdom, and is supplied in tablet or injectable form for the same indications as morphine is, often being preferred over morphine due to its lower side effect profile. It is also available for prescription to long-term users in the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark alongside psycho-social care, and a similar programme is being campaigned for by liberal political parties in Norway.
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