Loading...
Drugs of abuse, especially cocaine, increase dopamine signaling in reward centers such as the nucleus accumbens, which receives input from the ventral tegmental area. However, attempts to reduce substance use by antagonizing dopaminergic systems have not been successful, and there are no pharmacologic approaches for treating cocaine addiction. In a series of animal experiments, researchers identified a molecular dopaminergic pathway and a specific inhibitor of that pathway in rats that self-administered intravenous cocaine at a high rate.
Administration of a selective inhibitor of aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2), ALDH2i, to the rats resulted in a substantial, dose-dependent decrease in cocaine use. Researchers then extinguished cocaine-seek…