Cocaine addiction linked to voluntary drug use and cellular memory, UCSF study shows

30.07.08 - 23:54 ... source : UCSF

... Rats that voluntarily use cocaine show a persistent cellular memory in the brain’s reward center even after several months of abstinence from the drug, while their involuntary counterparts had no such memory, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, San Francisco.The researchers conclude that the pharmacologic effects of cocaine alone are not enough to cause long-lasting cellular memories in the brain’s reward circuit. The discovery by neuroscientists at UCSF's Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center appears in the July 31 issue of the journal "Neuron."The study opens a window onto the significance of active choice in using cocaine and extends our understanding that addiction is caused by more than the pharmacological effects of a given drug, according to Antonello Bonci, MD, senior author of the paper, UCSF professor of neurology, Howard J. Weinberger Cha ...» Next (HTML)