Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research (OnlineEarly Articles). 1 October 2007
Inhibitors of monoamine neurotransmitter transporters are well established as antidepressants. However, the evidence that single (serotonin) or dual (serotonin–norepinephrine) neurotransmitter uptake inhibitors can treat ethanol abuse, either as a comorbidity with depression or as a separate entity, is inconsistent.
Drugs that have, in addition, the ability to inhibit dopamine uptake may have an advantage in the treatment of alcohol abuse. Therefore, the inhibitor of norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine uptake, DOV 102,677, was tested for its effects on the volitional consumption of ethanol by an ethanol-preferring rat strain.
DOV 102,677 significantly decreased the volitional consumption of ethanol with minimal alterations in the intake of food or on body weight in an ethanol-preferring rat strain, suggesting that triple reuptake inhibitors may find utility in treating alcohol abuse.
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