Possible medication to treat cocaine use disorder: Rat study

Abstract

A federally funded study found that some receptors in the brain, if blocked, make it harder for rats to resist seeking cocaine. OK, if there are too many negatives in that sentence, we understand. But here's another. There are no medications to treat cocaine use disorder. So the researchers, writing in the Journal of Neuroscience, suggest that these receptors, which are certain acetylcholine receptors in the lateral habenula (LHb), the part of the brain that balances reward and aversion, may represent a future target for such medications. In 2020, over 41,000 people died from drug overdoses involving stimulants, including cocaine and methamphetamine. “This discovery gives researchers a new, specific target toward solving a problem that has long been elusive: developing treatments for cocaine addiction,” said National Institute on Drug Abuse Director (NIDA) Nora Volkow, M.D. “As we have seen with medications to treat opioid use disorder, adding this tool to clinical care could save lives from overdose and drastically improve health and quality of life.” There are still challenges, as the acetylcholine receptors are “involved in everything from regulating heart rate, affecting motion sickness, and controlling vasodilation,” as some examples. “These receptors are also located throughout the body, including many other regions of the brain.” Further research is needed to develop ways to target the system “without causing a cascade of side effects,” according to NIDA.