NIDA NOTES, Volume 20, Issue 6

The lead story discusses the effectiveness of legally mandated treatment for drug and alcohol problems. The Director's Perspective looks at the continuing challenges presented by HIV/AIDS, and discusses some factors that contribute to the disproportionate disease burden carried by the African-American community. Other research reports discuss the Recovery Management Checkup system, designed to help patients who are experiencing relapse; the potential role of glial cells in the brain's protective response to methamphetamine; the effects of obesity on nicotine reward; and gender influences on biological response to nicotine, cocaine, and alcohol. Issue 20-6 also features a "NIDA at Work" article, an in-depth look at the Division of Pharmacotherapies and Medical Consequences of Drug Abuse. The Tearoff feature discusses data from the 2004 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. "Research in Brief" highlights recently published, NIDA-funded studies, "What the Numbers Say" provides a data snapshot of the benefits of on-site psychiatric treatment among teens with co-occurring disorders. The issue also carries the full index to NIDA Notes Volume 20.

[ http://www.drugabuse.gov/NIDA_Notes/NNVol20N6/Index.html ]

Sample of Recent News Releases

NIH Researchers Complete Unprecedented Genetic Study That May Help Identify People Most at Risk for Alcoholism (8/24/06)

Researchers at the Molecular Neurobiology Branch of the National Institute on Drug Abuse have completed the most comprehensive scan of the human genome to date linked to the ongoing efforts to identify people most at risk for developing alcoholism. This study represents the first time the new genomic technology has been used to comprehensively identify genes linked to substance abuse. The study is available online and will be published in the American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B (Neuropsychiatric Genetics).

[ http://www.drugabuse.gov/newsroom/06/NR8-24.html ]

Imaging Study May Help Point Toward More Effective Smoking Cessation Treatments (8/7/06)

Results of a new imaging study, supported in part by the National Institute on Drug Abuse show that the nicotine received in just a few puffs of a cigarette can exert a force powerful enough to drive an individual to continue smoking. Researchers found that the amount of nicotine contained in just one puff of a cigarette can occupy about 30 percent of the brain's most common type of nicotine receptors, while three puffs of a cigarette can occupy about 70 percent of these receptors. When nearly all of the receptors are occupied (as a result of smoking at least 2 and one-half cigarettes), the smoker becomes satiated, or satisfied, for a time. Soon, however, this level of satiation wears off, driving the smoker to continue smoking throughout the day to satisfy cigarette cravings. The study was published in the August 2006 issue of the Archives of General Psychiatry.

[ http://www.drugabuse.gov/newsroom/06/NR8-07.html ]

NIDA NewsScan #44 - Criminal Justice Issue (7/24/06)

• New Research Examines the Relationship Between Greater Punitive Law Enforcement Policies and HIV Prevalence Among Intravenous Drug Users
  
• Predictors of Unmet Healthcare Needs Among Incarcerated Drug Abusers
  
• Treatments Enhance Juvenile Drug Court Outcomes
  
• Incarceration Among Factors That Increase Likelihood of Developing Hepatitis C