Drug addiction is a major health and societal problem in Australia. Relapse is among the most fundamental problems for addicts. This project studies the behavioural and brain mechanisms for relapse to drug seeking. It studies why relapse is more likely in some places than others; the brain mechanisms for this contextual control over relapse; and how relapse to seeking drug rewards is similar to and different from relapse to seeking non-drug rewards.
Contextual Control Over Relapse To Drug Seeking: Behavioural And Neural Mechanisms.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$395,750.00
Summary
Drug addiction is a major health and societal problem in Australia. It is consistently associated with an adverse impact upon individual users, their families, and communities. Prolonged drug use is associated with increased rates of physical problems (e.g., cardiovascular disease), mental health problems (e.g., depression and anxiety), and criminal involvement (e.g., property crimes and incarceration). A defining feature of drug addiction is that it is a chronically relapsing condition. Between ....Drug addiction is a major health and societal problem in Australia. It is consistently associated with an adverse impact upon individual users, their families, and communities. Prolonged drug use is associated with increased rates of physical problems (e.g., cardiovascular disease), mental health problems (e.g., depression and anxiety), and criminal involvement (e.g., property crimes and incarceration). A defining feature of drug addiction is that it is a chronically relapsing condition. Between 60-80% of addicts attempting to give up drug taking will relapse to drug taking. The behavioural and brain mechanisms which underpin this persistent propensity to relapse are largely unknown. This project studies the behavioural and brain mechanisms for relapse to drug addiction. This project uses a well validated animal model of drug taking to ask why relapse occurs. It will identify some of the environmental antecedents to relapse and the brain mechanisms which mediate relapse. As such, this project will project will provide important information about relapse to drug addiction and may help identify targets for therapeutic intervention and possibly disrupt the addictive cycle.Read moreRead less
Drug addiction imposes significant burdens on individual drug users, their families, and communities. This project uses an animal model to identify the brain regions and pathways which mediate extinction of drug seeking and therefore contribute to long-term abstinence from drug-seeking. The work will show how the brain inhibits drug-seeking and will contribute to the important goal of identifying new approaches to preventing relapse to drug-seeking.
A Prospective Cohort Study Of Mortality, Abstinence, Criminality And Psychiatric Comorbidity
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$419,500.00
Summary
Over 70 000 Australians are dependent on heroin. Heroin dependence is remarkably persistent and is, in many cases, a lifelong condition. Long term treatment outcome and abstinence from heroin among this group are poor. Mortality among heroin users is high, with heroin users dying at a rate 13 times that of peers. Despite the extent of the problem, the natural history of heroin users has not yet been studied in Australia. The current study will be the first Australian study of the natural history ....Over 70 000 Australians are dependent on heroin. Heroin dependence is remarkably persistent and is, in many cases, a lifelong condition. Long term treatment outcome and abstinence from heroin among this group are poor. Mortality among heroin users is high, with heroin users dying at a rate 13 times that of peers. Despite the extent of the problem, the natural history of heroin users has not yet been studied in Australia. The current study will be the first Australian study of the natural history of heroin users. The study will follow up a large cohort of heroin users over a three year period. Estimates will be obtained of mortality rates, abstinence rates, criminal careers, and psychiatric problems among heroin users. It will also examine factors that predict abstinence, mortality, criminality and levels of psychopathology, and determine the health costs associated with heroin use careers. The study will provide essential data on how heroin use progresses, and on what factors predict a better outcome for heroin users.Read moreRead less
How Commonly Used Psychoactive Drugs Affect The Hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal Axis
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$411,448.00
Summary
The body makes a number of responses when it is subjected to stress, and these include the secretion of hormones from the adrenal gland, including cortisol. It is not surprising that cortisol has effects upon the way the brain operates, nor is it surprising that diseases that are associated with stress (e.g. depression, alcoholism and other psychiatric complaints) create abnormal cortisol secretion. The drugs that are known to be successful in treating conditions such as depression and anxiety h ....The body makes a number of responses when it is subjected to stress, and these include the secretion of hormones from the adrenal gland, including cortisol. It is not surprising that cortisol has effects upon the way the brain operates, nor is it surprising that diseases that are associated with stress (e.g. depression, alcoholism and other psychiatric complaints) create abnormal cortisol secretion. The drugs that are known to be successful in treating conditions such as depression and anxiety have been shown to affect the secretion of cortisol, but, somewhat paradoxically, we do not precisely know how they operate. The aim of this research is to examine how drugs that are commonly used for the treatment of a number of psychiatric conditions (e.g. Prozac, Tofranil, Xanax, morphine and naltrexone) affect the secretion of hormones from the brain that ulitmately regulate the secretion of cortisol. We propose that the effects of these drugs is related to how they operate, and for how long they have been given. The findings generated by this research may help us determine new ways of diagnosing and treating a range of conditions.Read moreRead less
Brain Pathways Underlying Vulnerability To Drug Relapse
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$416,788.00
Summary
Addiction to drugs is a major health and social burden for Australian society. Once addiction is established, prevention of relapse is the most significant obstacle to successful treatment. Unfortunately, efficacious pharmaceutical options to treat relapse are lacking. By employing an animal model of relapse that accurately reflects drug taking in humans the proposed project aims to advance our understanding of the brain mechanism underlying addiction.