Adolescent Substance Abuse Articles
Study: vaccine may help addicts kick habit
By Staff Writer
Results from a new animal study have led researchers to believe they may have found a way to break and reverse cocaine addiction.
The study was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and is published in the online edition of Molecular Therapy. In it, scientists from Cornell University and the Scripps Research Institute created a vaccine that was administered to laboratory mice.
Mice that were vaccinated before cocaine exposure were less hyperactive while on the drug than those that were not given the vaccine. In addition, these results were consistent among mice that were given larger, more consistent doses of the drug.
According to the researchers, their data show that they can protect mice against the effects of cocaine. The vaccine produced an antibody immune response in the mice that bound to and sequestered cocaine molecules before they could reach the animals’ brains.
This vaccine has yet to be tested on humans, but the scientists believe that if it works, it will be most effective among those who already have a cocaine addiction and wish to quit.
Researchers behind the study also felt that the vaccine may be effective in the treatment of nicotine, heroin and opiate addiction.
