Drug Addictions Treatment

Posts Tagged ‘Vaccine’

Scientists in California have discovered a vaccine that neutralizes cocaine addiction in mice, and now prepare a human version could also work with other addictive as nicotine and methamphetamine. “Our very dramatic results show that we protect mice from the effects (addictive) of cocaine, and we believe these ranges are very promising in the fight against addiction in humans, “said the director of research, Ronald Crystal. The project Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, says the vaccine creates antibodies that neutralize the effects of cocaine that create addiction.

A co-researcher, Kim Jandra, said the vaccine “deleted the stimulant effects of cocaine.” emphasized that the vaccine blocks the effects of cocaine before it reaches the brain. In the laboratory model, the vaccine provided immunity to mice for a period of 13 weeks. Jandra said the vaccine would be ‘extremely useful for the treatment of cocaine addiction crack which has the highest rate of relapse ‘among patients in addiction treatment to stop. According to the Institute of Health, USA, in 2008 some five million 300 thousand Americans aged 12 years of age had used cocaine ‘crack’ at least once in previous months. It is considered that crack is one of the most addictive version of cocaine, whose consumption is prohibited in the country.

Jandra said that cocaine interferes with normal function in the brain dopamine, which functions as a reward system. A few seconds after using cocaine, the drug beyond the regular flow of blood and accumulates in the brain that creates a feeling of ecstasy that lasts several minutes. People who are addicted or who use cocaine often perceive such a system of ‘reward’ of drug as if it were greater success to stop the addiction, he said.

Jandra The vaccine that has developed since the 90′s makes cocaine ‘outsider’ to the immune system develops antibodies that neutralize the stimulating action, which creates addiction. In experiments, some mice received similar amounts of cocaine to which a human consume without suffering from addiction. Jandra said will go a long way to go before the vaccine can be marketed, but said he hoped one day his discovery is very important to combat addiction in humans.

Researchers from Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, USA, have developed a vaccine that helps block the sensation generated by cocaine use by 38 per cent of people who took it, as published in its latest issue the magazine ‘ Archives of General Psychiatry, thereby opening a new hope in the treatment of addiction to this drug.

As explained by the author of this research, Dr. Thomas Kosten, the aim is to curb the rewarding effects of cocaine and reduce relapses in their consumption, and so far it seems that “the concept works,” he said.

Cocaine molecules are too small to attract the attention of the immune system so that, for the body recognizes them, the researchers designed a vaccine that uses a harmless version of cholera toxin were added to small samples of cocaine molecular .

When the immune system reacts to the toxin, produces antibodies to cholera and cocaine, Kosten explained, and “these antibodies involve cocaine, preventing it from leaving the bloodstream. An enzyme called cholinesterase cocaine and breaks out of the body.

For the study, Kosten and his team have 94 volunteers, most crack users, a solid, smokable form of cocaine, which were in methadone treatment. In total, received five doses of vaccine or placebo for three months and those who had higher immune response were more likely to stay free from cocaine.

Thus, although the vaccine does not preclude the desire for cocaine, if he has shown to help prevent relapse in some addicts, Kosten said. The problem is that it creates antibodies in all people. “Twenty-five percent of people who are vaccinated have little antibody response,” he said. Read the rest of this entry »