Latest from NIDA

National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program Holds Opioid Symposium

May 15, 2019 | The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Intramural Research Program will hold a one-day symposium to summarize the most recent advances in opioid research.

Science Highlight

Brief drug use disrupts learning mechanisms in the brain

May 9, 2019 | In a new animal study, scientists at NIDA’s Intramural Research Program have demonstrated that cocaine use profoundly disrupts these teaching signals.

NIDA Notes

Narrative of Discovery: The Quest for a Medication To Treat Methamphetamine Addiction, Part 4

May 3, 2019 | In 2017, Dr. Linda Dwoskin applied to NIDA's Grand Opportunity for Medications Development program for support to continue her quest to develop the first-ever medication to reduce craving and relapse...

Science Highlight

The Brain and our Immune System: Working Together

May 1, 2019 | Growing evidence in animal studies documents bidirectional signaling between the brain and immune system in the development of behavioral and physical health problems.

Science Highlight

Scientists identify brain circuits engaged in compulsive heroin use

April 29, 2019 | People addicted to heroin and other opioids experience withdrawal when they discontinue or no longer have access to these drugs. Scientists at NIDA’s Intramural Research Program (IRP) wanted to learn...

News Release

Opioid Dose Variability Associated with Overdose

April 22, 2019 | A new study funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that high dose variability increases the odds for an opioid overdose independent of dose alone.

NIDA Notes

Research Links Adolescent Substance Use to Adult Brain Volumes

April 10, 2019 | This research: Revealed associations between nicotine, alcohol, and marijuana use during two periods of adolescence and smaller gray matter volume in two brain areas at age 25. Supports a hypothesis...

Science Highlight

Cues give clues in relapse prevention

April 8, 2019 | Scientists at NIDA's intramural research labs in Baltimore, Maryland have shown that discriminative stimuli can control the incubation of drug craving, even in the absence of conditioned stimuli.

NIDA Notes

Methadone Maintenance Treatment During Incarceration Has Long-Term Benefits

April 4, 2019 | This study reported: Prisoners who received methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) during incarceration were more likely than prisoners who did not receive MMT to engage in the treatment after being released...

Emerging Trend

FDA Special Announcement: Reports of Seizures After Using Nicotine Vaping Devices

April 4, 2019 | The FDA has become aware that some people who use e-cigarettes have experienced seizures, with most reports involving youth or young adult users.

NIDA Notes

Interim Buprenorphine Alleviates Psychiatric Symptoms in Waitlisted OUD Patients

March 27, 2019 | This study reported: Interim treatment with buprenorphine significantly improved the psychiatric symptoms of people awaiting comprehensive treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD). Buprenorphine treatment, even without concurrent psychosocial counseling, may...

News Release

Opioids without the risk of addiction?

March 26, 2019 | Investigators have found that the opioid-galanin receptor heteromers determine the different effects of methadone as compared to morphine and fentanyl, showing methadone with a weaker ability to activate the dopaminergic...

News Release

Dr. Jack Stein appointed NIDA Chief of Staff

March 20, 2019 | Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), has appointed Jack B. Stein, Ph.D., to be the NIDA Chief of Staff, a newly created position to...

News Release

Opioid Overdose Reversal News: FDA-approved naloxone devices produce substantially higher blood levels of naloxone than improvised nasal spray

March 15, 2019 | A new study looked at how well the FDA-approved nasal spray and autoinjector compared to the improvised nasal devices, which are not FDA-approved.

Science Highlight

The Genius of Chemogenetics

March 14, 2019 | Some NIDA-funded scientists have just published findings in the journal Science showing the development of a new, groundbreaking chemogenetics technology for modulating brain function in a remote, precise and ultra-sensitive...

News Release

Serotonin Unexpectedly Regulates Expression of Brain Genes

March 13, 2019 | The brain chemical serotonin can regulate expression of genes within neurons in a very unexpected way, as described in a NIDA-funded paper just published in the journal Nature.

Science Highlight

The brain in pain

March 13, 2019 | NIDA-funded researchers identified a critical role for an internal brain opioid network called the dynorphin-kappa opioid receptor (KOR) system.

NIDA Notes

Transcription Factor E2F3a Mediates Cocaine’s Effects on Gene Expression and Addiction-Related Behaviors

February 28, 2019 | NIDA-supported researchers have shown that increased levels of a single protein in the brain's reward center are indispensable for producing some of cocaine's addiction-like effects in animals. Their findings highlight...

News Release

New toolkit for genomic editing holds promise for addiction research

February 19, 2019 | The scientific world has advanced immeasurably by the science of DNA and genetics. Manipulating gene expression to change the way that cells such as neurons function has helped scientists create...

News Release

Monthly buprenorphine injections effective for opioid use disorders

February 19, 2019 | A newly published study suggests the long-acting buprenorphine formulation BUP-XR is more effective than placebo in helping patients struggling with addiction to opioids. BUP-XR is a monthly extended-release injection.

NIDA Notes

A Promising Alternative to Opioid Pain Medications

| En español

February 12, 2019 | This research shows: An experimental compound with a dual action at two opioid receptors may provide powerful pain relief without many of opioids' harmful side effects. The compound may also...

NIDA Notes

Disruption of Serotonin Contributes to Cocaine’s Effects

February 5, 2019 | This research: Traced the effects of cocaine-induced disruption of serotonin regulation in the ventral pallidum and orbitofrontal cortex. Suggests that these effects may contribute to drug-seeking and cocaine-associated cognitive impairments...

Science Highlight

National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program Holds Opioid Symposium

Brief drug use disrupts learning mechanisms in the brain

Narrative of Discovery: The Quest for a Medication To Treat Methamphetamine Addiction, Part 4

The Brain and our Immune System: Working Together

Scientists identify brain circuits engaged in compulsive heroin use

Opioid Dose Variability Associated with Overdose

Research Links Adolescent Substance Use to Adult Brain Volumes

Cues give clues in relapse prevention

Methadone Maintenance Treatment During Incarceration Has Long-Term Benefits

FDA Special Announcement: Reports of Seizures After Using Nicotine Vaping Devices

Interim Buprenorphine Alleviates Psychiatric Symptoms in Waitlisted OUD Patients

Opioids without the risk of addiction?

Dr. Jack Stein appointed NIDA Chief of Staff

Opioid Overdose Reversal News: FDA-approved naloxone devices produce substantially higher blood levels of naloxone than improvised nasal spray

The Genius of Chemogenetics

Serotonin Unexpectedly Regulates Expression of Brain Genes

The brain in pain

Transcription Factor E2F3a Mediates Cocaine’s Effects on Gene Expression and Addiction-Related Behaviors

New toolkit for genomic editing holds promise for addiction research

Monthly buprenorphine injections effective for opioid use disorders

A Promising Alternative to Opioid Pain Medications

Disruption of Serotonin Contributes to Cocaine’s Effects

The mystery of serotonin’s role in behavior

Higher rates of NAS linked with economic conditions

A whole new view of CB2

Cascade of Care model recommended for opioid crisis

Scientists closer to finding inherited traits in addiction

New Studies Clarify Risk Factors for Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome

New Insights for Astrocytes

Teens using vaping devices in record numbers