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Heroin is a very addictive chemical called diacetylmorphine. Heroin is a modified form of morphine, a highly abundant opium derived from the seedpods of the poppy plant.

Review reveals how nicotine damages blood vessels and heart health

A review published today in Nature Reviews Cardiology provides the most detailed picture yet of how nicotine damages the cardiovascular system – tracing the biological chain of events from the moment nicotine binds to receptors in blood vessel walls through to the atherosclerotic plaque rupture that triggers heart attacks and strokes.

19 Aug 2026

Injectable opioid treatment sees rapid growth across the United States

There was a substantial increase in recent years in the use of a form of the primary medication to treat opioid use disorder, according to a Rutgers Health study.

7 Jul 2026

Naloxone provides life-saving tool to reverse opioid overdoses

Anyone can save a life during an opioid overdose with naloxone, a front-line defense in the nation's overdose crisis.

16 Jun 2026

Experimental vaccine protects against fentanyl and related opioids

Fentanyl and related variants of the synthetic opioid kill more Americans each year than car accidents and gun violence combined. In too-high doses, the drugs hijack brain chemistry and shut down the signals that control breathing.

11 Jun 2026

Falling fentanyl deaths drive historic drop in American drug overdoses

Researchers from the University of California San Diego have found that U.S. overdose death rates declined dramatically between 2023 and 2024, marking the first recorded drop in all four waves of the nation's overdose crisis.

2 Jun 2026

GLP-1 drugs may help curb addiction by targeting reward pathways

GLP-1 receptor agonists, already used for Type 2 diabetes and obesity, show promise in reducing alcohol and drug-seeking behaviors through central reward and dopamine-related pathways. Most evidence remains preclinical, with limited early human data, so larger clinical trials are needed before these drugs can be recommended for addiction treatment.

21 May 2026

TikTok chatter could help predict where the opioid crisis is heading next

A large-scale analysis of 569,581 TikTok comments found that opioid-related discussions may help track and forecast synthetic opioid overdose mortality in the US. Recovery, harm reduction, drug use, drug sourcing, and loss-related conversations provided near-real-time signals that improved 6-month forecasting accuracy.

28 Apr 2026

Highly potent opioid shows potential as therapy for pain and opioid use disorder

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have identified a novel, highly potent opioid that shows potential as a therapy for both pain and opioid use disorder.

1 Apr 2026

Substance use among healthcare workers linked to poorer patient care

Their job is to protect, promote, and restore human health and lives, but healthcare workers believe that their own use of alcohol and illegal drugs reduces the quality of care they provide to patients.

3 Mar 2026

As more Americans embrace anxiety treatment, MAHA derides medications

After a grueling year of chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation to treat breast cancer, Sadia Zapp was anxious — not the manageable hum that had long been part of her life, but something deeper, more distracting.

23 Feb 2026

New research initiative examines impact of legal psychedelic services in community settings

A federally funded research initiative will enable researchers at Oregon Health & Science University and other organizations to assess the safety and effectiveness of state-regulated access to psilocybin, also known as magic mushrooms.

12 Feb 2026

Cannabis legalization may lead to a decline in daily opioid use

Legalizing cannabis for both medical and recreational use may lead to a decline in daily opioid use among people who inject drugs in the United States, according to a new study led by a Boston University School of Public Health researcher (BUSPH).

9 Feb 2026

Research sheds light on the UK's growing synthetic opioid problem

Deaths due to synthetic opioids nitazenes have likely been underestimated by up to a third.

9 Feb 2026

GLP-1 weight-loss drugs show early promise for treating addiction

This systematic review evaluates preclinical and clinical evidence on glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists as potential treatments for substance use disorders. Findings show consistent reductions in drug- and alcohol-seeking behaviors in animal models, while human evidence remains limited, heterogeneous, and preliminary.

21 Jan 2026

Thrift store. Clinic. Roller rink. Center becomes ‘radical’ lifeline amid homelessness, drug crises.

From the outside, the abandoned Family Dollar store in the Lower 9th Ward looks intimidating. It's covered in graffiti, with aluminum cans and trash dotting the parking lot.

9 Jan 2026

WSU researchers discover how a neural circuit drives relapse after opioid use

Washington State University researchers have discovered how a neural circuit – or a connection between two brain regions – drives relapse after opioid use, a finding that could lead to more effective treatments for opioid use disorders.

9 Dec 2025

Most Medicaid patients do not receive life-saving drugs for opioid use disorder

A US study of more than a million Medicaid enrollees, newly diagnosed with opioid use disorder (OUD), finds most – nearly seven in 10 – are not receiving access to potentially life-saving drugs within six months.

24 Nov 2025

Take-home methadone provides a lifesaving bridge to recovery after hospitalization

For patients recovering from opioid use disorder, particularly from drugs like fentanyl or heroin, the days immediately following a hospital stay are among the most dangerous.

22 Nov 2025

ChatGPT can provide trustworthy information for pregnant women seeking advice on opioid use disorder

When trained correctly on medically accurate information, ChatGPT can provide trustworthy information for pregnant women seeking medical advice for treating opioid use disorder, according to new research in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, based at Rutgers University.

23 Oct 2025

From street to lab: Advancing controlled substance testing with handheld Raman and FTIR

Discover how Thermo Fisher’s handheld Raman and lab FTIR tools are transforming controlled substance testing with safer, faster, and more reliable results.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific – Pharmaceutical and Biopharmaceutical Solutions 14 Oct 2025