Research offers new approach to developing treatments for cocaine and amphetamine...( results after its repeated use were b...),Health

results after its repeated use, were blunted in the CART knockout mice. The ability to recall the place where amphetamine was previously received was impaired in the CART knockout mice. Most significantly, voluntary intravenous cocaine intake, which resembles how addicts take many drugs, was reduced in the CART knockout mice. Both the rapid and long-term effects produced by cocaine and amphetamine were reduced when CART peptides were absent from the brain.

CART peptides were suspected to play a role in cocaine and amphetamine drug addiction more than 10 years ago after Dr. Couceyro and colleagues discovered the gene for these neuropeptides. Cocaine and amphetamine were found to increase CART gene activity within a brain area associated with addiction. The brain contains two different sized CART peptides and these are found in areas associated with addiction and emotions. Their location within these brain areas is unique among the various neurotransmitters and molecules involved in pleasure and addiction. The current study is the first to show a causal link between CART peptides and the actions of these addictive drugs. This study was funded by the Schweppe Foundation, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse/National Institutes of Health.

CART peptides may also hold promise as a therapeutic target for treating obesity. Early rodent studies showed a potent suppression of eating when CART peptides were injected directly into the brain. These studies suggested a role for CART peptides in the motivation or reason for why one eats. Interestingly, appetite suppression produced by CART peptide injections is similar to that seen with cocaine and amphetamine use. The precise mechanism by which cocaine and amphetamine decrease weight remains unknown, but CART peptides may have a role here as well. Future studies are needed to investigate the role of CART peptides in eating and obesity.

These findings point to a novel target for treating stimulant d
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Contact: Kathy Peterson
kathy.peterson@rosalindfranklin.edu
847-578-8344
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
28-Sep-2005

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