The gene that gets people hooked on cocaine has been found - and certain people could be more at risk than others. <\/p>\n
Those who have an altered form of a the protein could be at higher risk of addiction, according to scientists. <\/p>\n
The gene controls levels of the brain chemical glutamate which has been found to play a key role in drug dependence. <\/p>\n
Rats with a mutated form of the protein, called mGluR2, produced more of the neurotransmitter - which eliminated cocaine's 'rewards'. <\/p>\n
This is what keeps addicts wanting more opening the door to the gene could be 'packing a double punch.' <\/p>\n
The researchers said it could act as a biomarker for screening those at risk of cocaine addiction - and as a therapeutic target for drug development. <\/p>\n
Dr Zheng-Xiong Xi, of the US's National Institute on Drug Abuse, said: \"Our work suggests that, if you could take a medicine to activate mGluR2 activity, then it would decrease or significantly inhibit both cocaine-taking and cocaine-seeking behaviours.\" <\/p>\n
The study published in Cell Reports found rats that can't control glutamate were more likely to kick the habit once addicted. <\/p>\n
This suggests the gene, which protects nerve cells from being destroyed by excess glutamate, is involved in modulating the reward-seeking behaviour associated with drug addiction. <\/p>\n
The rats were more likely to consume cocaine when it was made freely available but less likely to seek it when they had to make more effort to obtain it. <\/p>\n
When cocaine was no longer available, the rats were quicker to cease the behaviours that had previously resulted in the drug's delivery. <\/p>\n
Even when cocaine was subsequently re introduced, they showed reduced interest for drug seeking, constituting a lower rate of relapse. <\/p>\n
Dr Xi said: \"The gene-knockout mice don't enjoy much reward when they take the cocaine. So when the drug is available to them, the animals work to increase their intake to feel rewarded. <\/p>\n
\"But when the drug is difficult to get, the reward isn't worth it anymore, the animal just wants to quit.\" <\/p>\n
Low or absent mGluR2 expression caused the rodents to experience a lessened neurological reward when taking cocaine. <\/p>\n
At the cellular level, the research illuminates the role that glutamate - the most abundant neurotransmitter in all vertebrates and a prominent contributor to pathways of learning, memory, and anxiety in humans - plays in cocaine addiction. <\/p>\n
This goes beyond previous findings that focused on dopamine response, the 'feelgood' chemical more commonly associated with reward seeking, as the main culprit. <\/p>\n
Deleting mGluR2 causes nerve cells to be awash in glutamate before any cocaine is ingested. <\/p>\n
Cocaine \"works\" by binding to receptors in place of neurotransmitters like glutamate and dopamine, forcing them to float around and excite neuron junctions, or synapses. <\/p>\n
So the pre-existing flood of glutamate limits its power to deliver a neurological reward. <\/p>\n
The researchers also plan on studying the influence of mGluR2 - which has been preliminarily associated with alcohol and nicotine addictions - in relation to opiates such as heroin. <\/p>\n
Added Dr Xi: \"It seems that mGluR2 may be a common target for treating addictions to many drugs.\" <\/p>\n
The finding adds to evidence glutamate, a neurotransmitter central to learning and memory, is also central to addiction. <\/p>\n
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\nGene that gets people hooked on cocaine has been identified and some are more at risk than others - Mirror.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"