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Battlefield acupuncture

Medical acupuncture, which is acupuncture performed by a licensed physician trained at a conventional medical school, is being used increasingly for pain control.

18 Dec 2008

Researchers find brain's reward and stress signaling circuits are intertwined in complex ways

Vanderbilt University Medical Center investigators have now discovered a functional link between reward and stress. They found that dopamine - the brain's chief reward signal - works through corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF) - the brain's main stress signal - to increase the activity of a brain region involved in addiction relapse.

16 Dec 2008

Pre-drinking - a new culture of intoxication

In a new report published online in the January issue of Addiction, researchers question whether current licensing policies have contributed to a rise in the phenomenon of "pre-drinking" amongst young people.

15 Dec 2008

Stressed-out mice reveal role of epigenetics in behavior

Research conducted by a team in Switzerland suggests that a family of genes involved in regulating the expression of other genes in the brain is responsible for helping us deal with external inputs such as stress.

12 Dec 2008

Researchers capture never before seen undulations of "dancing chromosomes"

The rhythm of life may beat far deeper than anyone previously thought. And it may gyrate and pulse in a way that rivals the sensuous choreography of "Dirty Dancing."

12 Dec 2008

Sugar is addictive

A Princeton University scientist will present new evidence today demonstrating that sugar can be an addictive substance, wielding its power over the brains of lab animals in a manner similar to many drugs of abuse.

10 Dec 2008

Researchers find inherited genetic variation in nicotine addiction

A new study from the Abramson Cancer Center and Department of Psychiatry in the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine shows that smokers who carry a particular version of a gene for an enzyme that regulates dopamine in the brain may suffer from concentration problems and other cognitive deficits when abstaining from nicotine - a problem that puts them at risk for relapse during attempts to quit smoking.

10 Dec 2008

When less is more: Brief inhibition of cancer target is effective and less toxic

New research shows that the delicate balance between maximum clinical impact and toxicity may not be quite as fragile as scientists had previously believed.

8 Dec 2008

$2.7 million boosts effort to create the big view of cancer

Many scientists like to discuss how each form of cancer is a distinct disease with its own causes and its own treatments. But researcher Hartmut "Hucky" Land, Ph.D., takes the opposite approach: He is hunting for the most basic rules that all cancers share to make good cells go bad.

25 Nov 2008

Scientists discover that blocking a neuropeptide receptor decreases nicotine addiction

The study was published in an online Early Edition issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences , the week of November 24.

24 Nov 2008

Tapentadol hydrochloride approved for pain relief

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Tapentadol hydrochloride, an immediate-release oral tablet for the relief of moderate to severe acute pain.

24 Nov 2008

FDA approves tapentadol immediate-release tablets for pain in adults

Millions of Americans with moderate to severe acute pain and their health-care providers will soon have a new treatment option.

21 Nov 2008

Smokeless tobacco products target youth

New research at West Virginia University is examining whether a smokeless, spitless tobacco product aimed at young adults is catching on.

21 Nov 2008

NJISA experts available for interviews on Alzheimer's disease

An estimated five million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's, a disease that affects parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language and is the most common form of dementia among older people.

21 Nov 2008

Party drinking or drinking problem?

From sexual antics with co-workers to acts of violence and embarrassing text messages, alcohol fuels a number of "bad behaviors" at workplace and family holiday parties, according to a new study commissioned by Caron Treatment Centers, one of the nation's leading non-profit addiction treatment centers.

19 Nov 2008