Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute have announced new research findings that link a particular stress hormone to alcoholism. The institute has so far conducted research using animal models only (rats), but the scientists are optimistic that the findings will translate to human behavior as well.

Lead researcher Marisa Roberto, an associate professor at the Institute, commented on the implications of the findings, saying the research "represents an important step in understanding how the brain changes when it moves from a normal to an alcohol-dependent state. Our study explored what we call in the field 'the dark side' of alcohol addiction. That's the compulsion to drink, not because it is pleasurable -- which has been the focus of much previous research -- but because it relieves the anxiety generated by abstinence and the stressful effects of withdrawal."

The hormone, which is known as corticotropin-releasing factor, is found in the brain and plays an important role in the body's response to stress. Roberto believes that blocking this hormone may prevent excessive consumption of alcohol under a number of psychological and behavioral conditions. The researchers also found that rats exposed to a hormone-suppressing chemical numerous times did not appear to develop an immunity to its effects; this supports the chemical's viability as a long-term treatment for alcoholism.

(Source: businessweek.com)

Labels: alcoholism, stress

A new vaccine, which is in phase three trials at over 20 scientific facilities across the nation, may help smokers beat smoking addiction once and for all. Each year, around 40 percent of smokers try to quit, and only about five percent succeed in giving up the habit for three months or more.

Most quitting aids, such as gum and the nicotine patch, work on the premise that delivering a small amount of nicotine via a different delivery system will help the smoker to battle nicotine cravings and dissociate from the physical act of smoking. The smoking vaccine actually prevents nicotine from reaching the brain, which keeps the smoker from experiencing any pleasure from smoking, and stops the "reinforcement" of continuing to smoke.

The University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Center is one of 20 research facilities participating in the phase three trial of the vaccine, which is the final step before FDA approval. Doctor Dorothy Hatsukami, head of the tobacco use research center at the University of Minnesota, commented on the vaccine's value to smokers who are trying to kick the habit:

"Will power is not sufficient. You need some tools to help you get over the highly addictive nature of nicotine. The way the nicotine vaccine works is, you can have a cigarette and it's just no longer reinforcing."

(Source: myfoxphoenix.com)

Labels: smoking addiction, smoking vaccine

A review of data from 14 separate studies indicates that even occasional binge-drinking at irregular intervals may undo any heart health benefits associated with alcohol consumption. According to lead researcher Michael Roerecke of the Center for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada, the study reinforces the fact that "not all alcohol consumption is good for health."

Light and moderate drinking, which means consuming one or two drinks per day or less, has long been considered a potential boon for heart health. Upon review of over a dozen studies on moderate drinkers, however, researchers found that individuals who drink heavily every so often were up to 45 percent more likely than light or moderate drinkers to develop coronary heart disease.

Coronary heart disease occurs when plaque buildup in the heart arteries impedes the flow of blood and oxygen. For the purposes of the review, occasional heavy drinking was defined as consuming five or more drinks in a day at least a dozen times per year. Regular heavy drinkers (those who consume an average of five or more drinks per day) were excluded from the study.

To arrive at these findings, Roerecke and colleague Jurgen Rehm combined 14 international studies conducted between 1982 and 2006, including data from more than 50,000 drinkers.

(Source: reuters.com)

Labels: alcohol, binge-drinking, health

Research by the University of Adelaide in Australia indicates that effects of ecstasy may be compounded when the drug is taken in warm environments, and that this may increase the risk of death.

Ecstasy deaths are known to be primarily related to elevated body temperature. This new research, conducted by University of Adelaide Pharmacology doctoral student Emily Jaehne, shows that drug users' failure to recognize their elevated body temperatures may also contribute to the fatalities.

Jaehne commented: "The fact that these drugs are often taken in warm nightclubs and at rave parties increases the risk of long-term changes in brain function, or even death. Our bodies usually maintain a constant temperature of 37 degrees Celsius, but in some cases ecstasy can elevate this by up to five degrees, leading to severe brain damage."

Jaehne has spent the last three years investigating the effect of ecstasy on body temperature and how drug users respond when their body temperatures increase. Ecstasy is one of the most popular illicit drugs in Australia. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, almost 24 percent of Australians ages 20 to 29 have used Ecstasy at least once.

Jaehne commented: "Ecstasy is more readily available here than in the U.S. and Europe and more widely used than heroin or cocaine in Australia. It is crucial, therefore, that we make people more aware of the dangers associated with this drug. When ecstasy users are taking the drug in nightclubs they tend to blame the surroundings for their elevated body temperature and just ignore the warning signs. That can be fatal."

(Source: sciencedaily.com)

Labels: ecstasy

According to new research, anxiety drugs utilize the same pathways in the brain as drugs such as heroin and cannabis, and this fact may explain why anxiety drugs are addictive.

A team of Swiss and American researchers has discovered that benzodiazepine-based drugs for anxiety, such as Valium and Xanax, produce a calming effect by enhancing the action of a neurotransmitter known as gamma-aminobutryic acid (GABA) in the same way as drugs such as opioids (heroin, oxycontin) and cannabinoids (marijuana, hashish). With the use of benzodiazepines, opioids and cannabinoids, the enhancement of GABA functioning activates dopamine production in the brain, which produces sensations of pleasure.

The researchers hope that this discovery will aid in the development of a new generation of non-addictive benzodiazepines. The study found that benzodiazepines work by attaching to a specific part of the GABA, known as the alpa1 subunit of the type A receptor. By developing diazepines that bind to a different part of the GABA, the researchers believe it may be possible to create the same calming effect without the addictive side effects.

(Source: www.reuters.com)

Labels: anxiety, benzodiazepines, drug addiction

The U.S. Army's second in command, general Peter Chiarelli, stated this week that the Army needs to double its substance abuse treatment staff in order to handle increased troop demand for alcohol abuse treatment. The statement came during an interview with USA Today.

According to Army data, last year 9,199 solders enrolled in substance abuse treatment after being diagnosed with alcohol problems. This represents a 56 percent increase over 2003, when the war in Iraq started. Overall, 16,388 soldiers requested some type of counseling last year. In 2003, 5,783 enrolled in substance abuse treatment and 11,309 soldiers sought counseling.

General Chiarelli commented: "There's no doubt in my mind that since 2001 and being involved in two wars ... that we probably have a higher incidence of alcohol abuse."

According to Les McFarling, director of the Army's Substance Abuse Program, the Army treatment program is down 20 percent from its authorized staffing level of 290. McFarling says that most soldiers seek treatment for alcohol problems after an incident, such as being cited for drunk driving. In addition, alcoholism is a much larger problem than drug abuse, with approximately 85 percent of the Army treatment program's caseload being alcohol-related.

(Source: USAToday.com)

Labels: alcohol, substance abuse

Older adults who have more money, engage in more social activities and whose friends approve more of drinking are more likely to drink excessively or engage in other high-risk drinking behaviors, according to a new study appearing in the April 2010 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.

Rudolf H. Moos, senior research career scientist for the Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care System in Palo Alto, Calif., and corresponding author for the study, commented on the significance of the study's focus: "Ours is one of the first studies to focus longitudinally on high-risk drinking among older adults ... and the first to have 10-year and 20-year follow-ups addressing this issue."

For the study, Moos and his team collected data from 719 adults (399 men, 320 women), aged 55 to 65 at baseline; then they collected data again 10 years and 20 years later. The researchers found that older adults with greater financial resources, more social activities and friends who approved of drinking were more likely to engage in high-risk drinking. For the purposes of the study, high-risk drinking was defined as more than three drinks per day or more than 14 drinks per week.

Moos commented on the findings: "Our findings show that, one, certain social factors may enhance the chances of an individual engaging in high-risk drinking and, two, once high-risk drinking has developed, social choices may be made to facilitate continuing this behavior. Older adults who engage in high-risk alcohol consumption tend to select friends who are more likely to drink and to approve of drinking.

"They may also experience a decline in the quality of relationships with extended family members, that is, high-risk drinking may impair some family relationships. Compared to older women, older men may be more vulnerable or susceptible to some social influences on drinking. Specifically, having more money, and friends who approve more of drinking, seem to be more closely related to high-risk drinking among older men than among older women."

(Source: sciencedaily.com)

Labels: alcohol

A new study out of Brazil indicates that heavy alcohol use is associated with greater risk for memory and cognitive problems among the elderly than mild or moderate alcohol use. This correlation seems especially strong among older women.

Marcos Antonio Lopes, corresponding author for the study, commented on the findings: "We found that heavy alcohol use among the elderly people we investigated was high at 8.2 percent and affected principally men from low socioeconomic levels. However, the effects of heavy alcohol use on memory and other cognitive functions were more evident in women."

The study authors cite a crucial lack of research on the effects of drinking among the elderly. This results largely from the fact that most studies of cognitive decline in elderly individuals exclude participants who drink heavily.

Jerson Laks, associate professor at the State University of Rio de Janeiro and a researcher with the Brazilian National Committee for Research, explained, "Alcohol use is frequently an exclusion criterion for any study of cognition and dementia in the elderly, as well as in studies aimed at depression. Therefore, by simply excluding alcohol use and abuse, most studies cannot reveal the interaction between drinking behaviors and cognition in this age range.

"This study shows that older people keep drinking along the life span. Taking into consideration that drinking may lead to falls and to cognitive impairment when heavy use is the case, this study creates important awareness about this issue."

(Source: sciencedaily.com)

Labels: alcohol, elderly

Although severe stress, such as sexual abuse, early in life has been shown to increase the risk of alcohol and drug addiction later on, scientists have found that some abuse survivors carry a genetic variation that protects them from the increased risk of alcohol abuse and its effects.

Researchers at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis identified the key set of genetic variations, called the H2 haplotype, in a recent study. They believe that the finding could support the development of targeted treatments for alcohol dependence that are based on both genetic traits and history of exposure to severe stress. Scientists estimate that genetics account for about half the risk of developing alcoholism, while the other half comes from environmental factors.

Elliot C. Nelson, M.D., lead author of the study, commented: "We looked at how genes and environment interact. Our analysis included both sexual abuse and information about the DNA region that carries the H2 haplotype. People who carry that genetic pattern were protected against the risks for alcohol consumption and alcohol dependence typically associated with sexual abuse."

The researchers found that sexual abuse survivors with the alternate genetic pattern, known as the H1 haplotype, were three times more likely than study participants who had not been abused to be heavy drinkers and alcohol dependent. By contrast, participants with the H2 haplotype appeared to be completely protected from this increased risk.

(Source: sciencedaily.com)

Labels: genetics, sexual abuse, substance abuse

According to new research by a team of scientists at The Scripps Research Institute, a specific stress hormone is key to the development and maintenance of alcohol dependence. The researchers found that by blocking the stress hormone corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), they could also block the symptoms of addiction. This correlation suggests a promising concept for developing a drug to treat alcohol dependence.

The research, which occurred over the six-year period, will appear in an article in an upcoming print edition of the journal Biological Psychiatry.

Associate Professor Marisa Roberta, lead researcher, commented on the findings: "I'm excited about this study. It represents an important step in understanding how the brain changes when it moves from a normal to an alcohol-dependent state."

The study not only confirms the central role of CRF in alcohol dependence, but it also shows that CRF can be successfully blocked on a long-term basis (at least in rats) to alleviate the symptoms of alcohol dependence. This is the first study to do so.

Roberta further commented: "Research to understand alcoholism is important for society. Our study explored what we call in the field 'the dark side' of alcohol addiction. That's the compulsion to drink, not because it is pleasurable -- which has been the focus of much previous research -- but because it relieves the anxiety generated by abstinence and the stressful effects of withdrawal."

(Source: www.sciencedaily.com)

Labels: alcohol, brain_chemistry

North Carolina is home to more than 120,000 active-duty military personnel, the fourth largest concentration in the nation. According to a new report by The Coalition, a group of 40 statewide organizations that advocates for North Carolina veterans, returning troops require greater access to substance abuse treatment.

Researchers have found evidence of alcohol and substance use problems among military personnel during pre- and post-deployment. Research has also found that those military personnel who were deployed and exposed to combat were significantly more likely to experience new-onset heavy drinking, binge drinking and alcohol related problems (Jacobson et al., 2008).

Of 350,000 OEF-OIF (Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom) veterans, 16 percent were diagnosed with alcohol or other substance abuse; 4 percent with alcohol dependence; and 2 percent with other substance dependence (Eggleston et al., 2009). Research also shows that when substance abuse or dependence is combined with post-traumatic stress disorder (prevalence rates of 13-22 percent), clinical problems such as psychosocial impairment, aggression and suicide increase.

(Source: www.carolinanewswire.com)

Labels: military, substance abuse, treatment