Research Highlights

New discovery on the brain’s reward pathway

November 27, 2019 | Scientists at NIDA’s Intramural Research Program (IRP) have identified a population of neurons engaged in the compulsive nature of food seeking, which, like substance use, engage the brain’s reward circuit...

NIDA Notes

Nerve-Cell Growth During Abstinence From Methamphetamine May Promote Reinstatement of Drug Use in Rats

November 20, 2019 | Neurogenesis that occurs during abstinence from methamphetamine in a brain region related to memory and learning may promote relapse-like behavior.

Science Highlight

Healing the altered brains of smokers

October 31, 2019 | A study from NIDA’s Intramural Research Program illuminates the roles of the brain’s striatum and habenula in nicotine withdrawal and reward, suggesting that current medications for smoking cessation are not...

NIDA Notes

Mindful Awareness in Body-Oriented Therapy Proves Useful in Women Treated for Substance Use Disorder

October 31, 2019 | Mindful Awareness in Body-Oriented Therapy (MABT) improved emotion regulation, reduced craving, and promoted abstinence in women with a history of trauma and emotional problems receiving outpatient treatment for substance use...

Nora's Blog

Addressing the Socioeconomic Complexities of Addiction—Lessons from the Kensington Neighborhood in Philadelphia

October 29, 2019 | This September, I was invited by Thomas Farley, the Health Commissioner of Philadelphia, to see firsthand how that city is responding to the opioid crisis. We toured Prevention Point, a...

Science Highlight

Who is most likely to become addicted to nicotine?

October 25, 2019 | NIDA scientists discover that connectivity between insular regions of the brain before using nicotine can predict severity of addiction.

NIDA Notes

Racial and Socioeconomic Disparities in Tobacco Smoke Exposure Persist Among U.S. Children

October 24, 2019 | The number of children (ages 3 to 11 years) in the United States who are exposed to tobacco smoke decreased steadily from 1999 to 2014. However, childhood tobacco smoke exposure...

Nora's Blog

New Discovery Illuminates Brain Link Between Nicotine and Diabetes

October 17, 2019 | Until recently, nicotine’s link to diabetes has been thought to involve inflammation and oxidative stress caused by chemicals in cigarette smoke, but a group of researchers have discovered an unexpected...

NIDA Notes

Machine Learning Applied to Brain Imaging Data Predicts Response to Cocaine Use Disorder Treatment

October 14, 2019 | This study demonstrated that functional connectivity among a large number of brain regions predicts patients’ chances of achieving abstinence in treatment for cocaine use disorder.

Nora's Blog

With NIDA’s Help, Startups Translate Addiction Science into New Technologies

October 9, 2019 | Over the past few years, NIDA’s Office of Translational Initiatives and Program Innovations (OTIPI) has used these and other funding mechanisms to help biotech startups develop incredibly innovative technologies that...

Nora's Blog

NIDA Announces New NIH HEAL Initiative Awards to Address the Opioid Crisis

September 26, 2019 | In Fiscal Year 2019, approximately 375 NIH HEAL Initiative grants, contracts, supplements, and cooperative agreements in 41 states, totaling $945 million, have been awarded to researchers and research teams across...

Science Highlight

Measuring sleep challenges in opioid use disorder patients

September 25, 2019 | A new study at NIDA’s Intramural Research Center measured sleep patterns in opioid use disorder patients and found that clinic appointment hours make a difference in sleep quality. They also...

Nora's Blog

Suicide Deaths Are a Major Component of the Opioid Crisis that Must Be Addressed

September 19, 2019 | September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. In observance, our two institutes, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), are taking this opportunity...

Science Highlight

NASEM releases National Agenda on Children’s Behavioral Health

September 11, 2019 | The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine has released a national scientific agenda on Fostering Healthy Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Development in Children and Youth, recommending a comprehensive approach...

Science Highlight

Unraveling the mystery of the glutamate-dopamine connection

September 3, 2019 | Investigators identify a subpopulation of calbindin neurons with the capability to co-release glutamate and dopamine in the nucleus accumbens shell.

Science Highlight

Worms lead scientists to a new anti-opioid system

August 29, 2019 | A team of NIH-funded scientists used worms to discover a surprising biological system that counteracts the effects of opioids, offering a potential new target for improving the safety of opioid...

Nora's Blog

Emergency Departments Can Help Prevent Opioid Overdoses

August 27, 2019 | Common sense and a growing body of research suggest that patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) who receive acute care in an emergency department will be at reduced risk for...

NIDA Notes

Rats Prefer Social Interaction to Heroin or Methamphetamine

August 23, 2019 | This study showed that rats will forgo heroin and methamphetamine in favor of spending time with another rat. It also highlights the importance of incorporating voluntary choice between drugs and...

Science Highlight

New findings could lead to reduced replication of the HIV virus

August 14, 2019 | In this study, NIDA-funded scientists found that the HIV RNA genome has two previously unknown types of RNA marks.

Science Highlight

Teens who misuse medicines get them from multiple sources

August 8, 2019 | Two NIDA-funded studies have found that adolescents using multiple sources for prescription medications are at high risk for other substance use.

NIDA Notes

THC Exposure in Adolescence Disrupts Brain Maturation in Animals

August 5, 2019 | A NIDA-supported study may help explain observed links between adolescent marijuana use and vulnerability to psychiatric disorders.

Science Highlight

First time drug use more common in summertime

August 1, 2019 | Government surveys showed that in 2017, an estimated three million people tried marijuana for the first time, just over a million tried cocaine, close to 800,000 tried LSD, and close...

Science Highlight

Parenting programs lead to healthier behaviors

July 25, 2019 | A study conducted among 517 youth in the rural areas of the southeastern United States demonstrates the effectiveness of a parenting enhancement program in both preventing drug use and obesity...

Nora's Blog

The Importance of Treating Opioid Use Disorder in the Justice System

July 24, 2019 | Effectively delivering OUD treatment in the justice system will give individuals with OUD a chance of recovery, and will make a huge difference in reducing the toll of the opioid...

Science Highlight

Similarities between aggressive and addictive behaviors

July 23, 2019 | Scientists from NIDA’s Intramural Research Program show that neural mechanisms that control appetitive aggressive behavior are similar to those that control drug-taking and seeking (relapse), suggesting common neurobiological mechanisms of...

Nora's Blog

New discovery on the brain’s reward pathway

Nerve-Cell Growth During Abstinence From Methamphetamine May Promote Reinstatement of Drug Use in Rats

Healing the altered brains of smokers

Mindful Awareness in Body-Oriented Therapy Proves Useful in Women Treated for Substance Use Disorder

Addressing the Socioeconomic Complexities of Addiction—Lessons from the Kensington Neighborhood in Philadelphia

Who is most likely to become addicted to nicotine?

Racial and Socioeconomic Disparities in Tobacco Smoke Exposure Persist Among U.S. Children

New Discovery Illuminates Brain Link Between Nicotine and Diabetes

Machine Learning Applied to Brain Imaging Data Predicts Response to Cocaine Use Disorder Treatment

With NIDA’s Help, Startups Translate Addiction Science into New Technologies

NIDA Announces New NIH HEAL Initiative Awards to Address the Opioid Crisis

Measuring sleep challenges in opioid use disorder patients

Suicide Deaths Are a Major Component of the Opioid Crisis that Must Be Addressed

NASEM releases National Agenda on Children’s Behavioral Health

Unraveling the mystery of the glutamate-dopamine connection

Worms lead scientists to a new anti-opioid system

Emergency Departments Can Help Prevent Opioid Overdoses

Rats Prefer Social Interaction to Heroin or Methamphetamine

New findings could lead to reduced replication of the HIV virus

Teens who misuse medicines get them from multiple sources

THC Exposure in Adolescence Disrupts Brain Maturation in Animals

First time drug use more common in summertime

Parenting programs lead to healthier behaviors

The Importance of Treating Opioid Use Disorder in the Justice System

Similarities between aggressive and addictive behaviors

The Need for Diversity and Inclusivity in Presenting Scientific Research

Access to Addiction Services Differs by Race and Gender

Drug Use and Its Consequences Increase Among Middle-Aged and Older Adults

Prescription opioid misuse in high school linked to later heroin use

Medical Marijuana Laws and Opioid Overdose Rates