Experts on drug abuse have known for a long time that teenagers are more susceptible to becoming addicted to drugs than adults. Some studies show that the earlier a person starts to use drugs, the more likely he is to become an addict.

Now a new study of laboratory animals from Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois found that adult mice react differently to cocaine and methamphetamine than adolescent mice.  Young mice were much less sensitive to these drugs' capability of stimulating locomotion; in fact, it was as if the adolescent mice did not even get a dose of the drug, according to lead author Professor Justin Rhodes.

This finding is very significant because it means a teenager's first experience with cocaine or methamphetamine would probably be much less intense and more enjoyable than an adult's.

"There is a lot of data in humans that show a relationship between how your initial response predicts your later use," said Dr. Rhodes.  "If you have a strong reaction to something, then you are less likely to do it again."

He said that further studies are necessary to figure out what it is in the brain that allows adolescence to be less sensitive, because the reasons why they show different sensitivity to drugs has long-term consequences.

The study appeared in the journal Neuroscience.
 

Labels: cocaine, methamphetamine

Posted By: Jane St. Clair