Aims

To support the free and open dissemination of research findings and information on alcoholism and alcohol-related problems. To encourage open access to peer-reviewed articles free for all to view.

For full versions of posted research articles readers are encouraged to email requests for "electronic reprints" (text file, PDF files, FAX copies) to the corresponding or lead author, who is highlighted in the posting.

___________________________________________

Thursday, May 7, 2009

VideoCast - Brain Stress Systems and Addiction
Presented by: George Koob, Ph.D., Committee of the Neurobiology of Addictive Disorders, The Scripps Research Institute


Previous studies of alcohol dependent, opiate dependent and cocaine dependent animals during acute withdrawal have shown enhanced stress-like responses that are reversed by selective competitive corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) antagonists. Studies with animals exposed to chronic administration of cocaine, alcohol and cannabinoids have shown increases in CRF activity in the amygdala as measured by in vivo microdialysis. Even more exciting are results showing that CRF antagonists gain the ability to reduce alcohol drinking in animals with a history of dependence, but are inactive in animals with no history of dependence. These results suggest that the increased drug intake associated with drug dependence may involve not only decreases in the function of transmitter systems that are associated with the acute reinforcing (rewarding) effects of drugs of abuse (previous work from our group), but also with the recruitment of the brain neuropeptide systems associated with behavioral and neurobiological responses.






__________________________________________________

at