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opioid addiction

·June 5, 2024·6 min read

Brain Plasticity’s Dark Side: New Insights into Addiction Mechanisms

Researchers discovered that adaptive myelination, a form of brain plasticity, contributes to drug addiction. A single morphine dose in mice triggered myelination in reward-related brain circuits, reinforcing drug-seeking behavior. Blocking this myelination prevented addiction, highlighting potential new treatment strategies.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·October 27, 2023·4 min read

Innocent Faces of Fentanyl: Opioid Use Linked to Distinct Birth Anomalies

Researchers have identified a potential new syndrome in babies born to mothers who used fentanyl during pregnancy. The infants displayed distinctive facial features, small heads, short stature, and various physical abnormalities.

Featured Neuroscience

·September 6, 2023·5 min read

Insomnia Drug May Ward Off Opioid Relapse

A recent study highlights a new benefit of quality sleep: deterring opioid relapse. In the study, rats undergoing oxycodone withdrawal received an experimental insomnia treatment.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·July 26, 2023·7 min read

Glutamate Receptor Activation: A Potential Cure for Opioid Addiction?

Scientists discovered a potential new weapon in the battle against opioid use disorder (OUD), a condition that affects over two million people in the U.S. alone. The drug, ADX106772, acts on metabotropic glutamate 2 receptors in the brain, leading to a reduction in oxycodone intake and drug-seeking behavior in an animal model.

Featured Neuroscience

·June 26, 2023·3 min read

New Neural Pathway to Combat Fentanyl Addiction Identified

Researchers reveal the significant role of claustral neurons in controlling fentanyl consumption. The study, harnessing a novel method that mirrors real-life opioid intake scenarios, opens new avenues in our understanding of addiction and potential treatments.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·May 23, 2023·10 min read

Group Support and Tapering Reduce Opioid Dependence in Chronic Pain Patients

A new treatment shows promising results in helping people stop long-term opioid use for managing chronic pain. The study revealed that an intervention program combining group support and individual guidance allowed one in five people to quit opioids within a year, without increasing their pain or requiring substitute medication.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·April 28, 2023·5 min read

Insomnia Drug Belsomra May Help Treat Opioid Addiction

A preclinical study found that suvorexant (Belsomra), an insomnia drug, could be a potential treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) in rats. If the results are replicated in humans, the drug could offer a promising treatment for the millions of people with OUD and reduce drug intake and block relapse.

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Featured Neuroscience Pain Psychology

·March 29, 2023·4 min read

Fibromyalgia May Worsen Opioid Addiction

Pain associated with fibromyalgia may put patients at risk of developing opioid use disorder, a new study reports.

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Featured Genetics Neuroscience

·February 25, 2023·6 min read

A New Epigenetic Brain Defense Against Recurrence of Opioid Use

HDAC5, the "epigenetics" enzyme, plays a key role in limiting opioid-associated memories and drug-seeking behaviors following abstinence from drugs in rats. The findings provide a new avenue for the treatment of opioid addiction.

Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles

·February 21, 2023·4 min read

Brain Circuit Involved in Fentanyl Abuse and Relapse Identified

Fentanyl enhances direct pathway medium spiny neurons activity in the striatum. During withdrawal from the opioid, inhibitory signals from direct pathway medium spiny neurons to dopaminergic neurons become enhanced. The enhanced suppression of dopaminergic neurons contributes to the negative emotions associated with fentanyl withdrawal. Inhibiting the direct pathway medium spiny neurons can reduce withdrawal symptoms and associated anxiety behaviors.

Featured Neuroscience

·February 18, 2023·2 min read

How AI Can Help Design Drugs to Treat Opioid Addiction

Researchers are turning to artificial intelligence to find novel drugs that can block kappa opioid receptors with the hope to alleviate opioid addiction.

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Featured Neuroscience Open Neuroscience Articles Psychology

·April 7, 2022·3 min read

Psilocybin Use Associated With Lower Risk of Opioid Addiction

Opioid use disorder is 30% less common in those who used psilocybin compared to those who have never been exposed to the psychedelic. Researchers say psilocybin may protect against opioid addiction by affecting the transmission of dopamine and serotonin.

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opioid addiction

Brain Plasticity’s Dark Side: New Insights into Addiction Mechanisms

Innocent Faces of Fentanyl: Opioid Use Linked to Distinct Birth Anomalies

Insomnia Drug May Ward Off Opioid Relapse

Glutamate Receptor Activation: A Potential Cure for Opioid Addiction?

New Neural Pathway to Combat Fentanyl Addiction Identified

Group Support and Tapering Reduce Opioid Dependence in Chronic Pain Patients

Insomnia Drug Belsomra May Help Treat Opioid Addiction

Fibromyalgia May Worsen Opioid Addiction

A New Epigenetic Brain Defense Against Recurrence of Opioid Use

Brain Circuit Involved in Fentanyl Abuse and Relapse Identified

How AI Can Help Design Drugs to Treat Opioid Addiction

Psilocybin Use Associated With Lower Risk of Opioid Addiction

Early-Life Stimulation Switches On a Molecular Code for Memory

Mental Illness Can Also Bring Strengths

Hidden Brain Layers Revealed in Key Memory Center

AI Is Changing the Way Humans Grieve, Remember, and Face Death

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