Addiction News and Research

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NIH grants $7.5 million for researchers to develop novel compounds in treating nicotine addiction

The Scripps Research Institute and the University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine have been awarded approximately $7.5 million over five years to develop novel compounds that could eventually become drug candidates for the treatment of nicotine dependence, and possibly other drug addictions.

16 Dec 2010

Naltrexone may help treat alcoholism

A little-used medication can help treat alcoholism, an updated review of studies confirms.

15 Dec 2010

Preliminary results from Phase 1b/2a trial of MediciNova's ibudilast in opioid addicts announced

Drug addiction investigators with joint appointments at Columbia University Medical Center and the New York State Psychiatric Institute along with MediciNova Inc, a biopharmaceutical company publicly traded on the Nasdaq Global Market and the Jasdaq Market of the Osaka Securities Exchange, today reported preliminary results of the company's neurological drug candidate, ibudilast (MN-166/AV411), in a Phase 1b/2a trial in opioid addicts. The study was largely funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) with MediciNova supplementation.

14 Dec 2010

Using buprenorphine to treat opioid-dependent pregnant women may result in healthier babies

Using buprenorphine instead of methadone — the current standard of care — to treat opioid-dependent pregnant women may result in healthier babies, suggests new findings from an international team led by Johns Hopkins researchers and published in the Dec. 9 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

10 Dec 2010

Exposure to tobacco smoke causes immediate damage leading to serious illness or death

Exposure to tobacco smoke - even occasional smoking or secondhand smoke - causes immediate damage to your body that can lead to serious illness or death, according to a report released today by U.S. Surgeon General Regina M. Benjamin. The comprehensive scientific report - Benjamin's first Surgeon General's report and the 30th tobacco-related Surgeon General's report issued since 1964 - describes specific pathways by which tobacco smoke damages the human body and leads to disease and death.

10 Dec 2010

Research sheds new light on dopamine's role in brain's reward system

Researchers have shed new light on dopamine's role in the brain's reward system, which could provide insight into impulse control problems associated with addiction and a number of psychiatric disorders.

9 Dec 2010

Alkermes announces preliminary results from ALKS 33 Phase 2 study in alcohol dependence

Alkermes, Inc. today announced preliminary results from a phase 2 clinical study of ALKS 33, one of Alkermes' proprietary candidates for the treatment of reward disorders and other central nervous system (CNS) disorders. The 12-week study was designed to assess the safety and efficacy of daily oral administration of three different dose levels of ALKS 33 compared to placebo in 400 alcohol dependent patients.

9 Dec 2010

Contrave, new weight loss pill gets FDA panel nod

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) panel yesterday recommended the approval of Orexigen Therapeutics’ weight loss drug Contrave. This is the first time a weight loss drug has received the nod. The vote went 13 to 7 for Contrave’s approval and 11 to 8, with an abstention that additional studies be conducted on heart risks. Although experts agree to risks they believe the benefits outweigh the risks. Although the FDA is not compelled to go with the panel’s recommendation, it more often than not does. The FDA will deliver its verdict by Jan. 31 2011.

7 Dec 2010

Drug prescribed for Parkinson's disease may also treat restless leg syndrome: MCG researchers

A drug prescribed for Parkinson's disease may also treat restless leg syndrome without the adverse side effects of current therapies, Medical College of Georgia researchers say.

7 Dec 2010

NSU offers free dental services to victims of domestic violence

Nova Southeastern University (NSU) is offering free dental services to victims of domestic violence, who otherwise may not have access to such services.

3 Dec 2010

Quitting smoking eases symptoms of depression

Quitting smoking is certainly healthy for the body, but doctors and scientists haven't been sure whether quitting makes people happier, especially since conventional wisdom says many smokers use cigarettes to ease anxiety and depression. In a new study, researchers tracked the symptoms of depression in people who were trying to quit and found that they were never happier than when they were being successful, for however long that was.

3 Dec 2010

Smoking reduces brain thickness

Many brain imaging studies have reported that tobacco smoking is associated with large-scale and wide-spread structural brain abnormalities.

3 Dec 2010

AVMA condemns actions of animal rights activists against UCLA research neuroscientist

Citing its policy on the use of animals in research, testing and education, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) today condemned the recent actions of animal rights activists who have targeted a University of California research neuroscientist. The scientist's work includes the use of nonhuman primates to research biochemical factors that contribute to methamphetamine and tobacco addiction in adolescents, as well as to better understand cognitive problems that contribute to behavioral, speech and reasoning disabilities in schizophrenics.

2 Dec 2010

Timberline Knolls psychiatrist recommends patients to receive specialized care for co-occurring disorder

According to the American Psychiatric Association, at least three percent of the United States population has a co-occurring disorder, yet only eight percent of those suffering receive specialized treatment for both their mental illness and substance abuse disorders.

2 Dec 2010

New brain imaging technique can trace effects of SYN115 drug in Parkinson's disease

Neuroscientists using a new brain imaging technique could see an investigational drug for Parkinson's disease get into a patient's brain and affect blood flow in several key structures, an indicator the drug may be effective.

1 Dec 2010

CAMH neuroscientists develop novel protein peptide for targeted treatment of depression

Neuroscientists at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) have developed a protein peptide that may be a novel type of highly targeted treatment for depression with a low side-effect profile. Depression affects one in ten Canadians at some time in their lives and is a leading cause of disability worldwide.

30 Nov 2010

Molecular switch plays crucial role in addictive behavior and memory processes

Learning and memory formation are based on the creation of new connections between neurons in the brain. Also, behaviors such as nicotine addiction manifest themselves in long-term changes of neuronal connectivity and can - at least in this respect - be viewed as a form of learning.

30 Nov 2010

CRE comments on Addiction's menthol cigarettes Supplement

Addiction has published a Supplement for the month of December 2010 dealing with mentholated cigarettes.

26 Nov 2010

Léger Marketing survey shows substance abuse problems are major concern for Quebecers

More than one in eight Quebecers think drug and alcohol dependency problems are public health issues of concern. In the Léger Marketing survey "Quebecers and Substance Abuse," released today as part of Drug Awareness Week, half of respondents say they are affected by substance abuse problems among those around them.

26 Nov 2010

UMDNJ researchers develop comprehensive strategy for recovery from smoking addiction

Researchers at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ), following 10 years of studying tobacco use among smokers with mental illness, have developed a comprehensive strategy for recovery from smoking addiction that could serve as a nationwide model.

25 Nov 2010

Addiction News and Research

NIH grants $7.5 million for researchers to develop novel compounds in treating nicotine addiction

Naltrexone may help treat alcoholism

Preliminary results from Phase 1b/2a trial of MediciNova's ibudilast in opioid addicts announced

Using buprenorphine to treat opioid-dependent pregnant women may result in healthier babies

Exposure to tobacco smoke causes immediate damage leading to serious illness or death

Research sheds new light on dopamine's role in brain's reward system

Alkermes announces preliminary results from ALKS 33 Phase 2 study in alcohol dependence

Contrave, new weight loss pill gets FDA panel nod

Drug prescribed for Parkinson's disease may also treat restless leg syndrome: MCG researchers

NSU offers free dental services to victims of domestic violence

Quitting smoking eases symptoms of depression

Smoking reduces brain thickness

AVMA condemns actions of animal rights activists against UCLA research neuroscientist

Timberline Knolls psychiatrist recommends patients to receive specialized care for co-occurring disorder

New brain imaging technique can trace effects of SYN115 drug in Parkinson's disease

CAMH neuroscientists develop novel protein peptide for targeted treatment of depression

Molecular switch plays crucial role in addictive behavior and memory processes

CRE comments on Addiction's menthol cigarettes Supplement

Léger Marketing survey shows substance abuse problems are major concern for Quebecers

UMDNJ researchers develop comprehensive strategy for recovery from smoking addiction

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

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