Current Neuropharmacology - Volume 3, Issue 2, 2005

Despite the fact that more people seek treatment for cannabis-related disorders than for any other illicit substance-related disorder in the U.S., there are no medications approved for the treatment of these disorders. Similarly, more than half of those meeting criteria for a cocaine use disorder seek treatment. Yet, after two decades of intense medications development research efforts, there remains no approved cocai Read More

The rostromedial medulla, including the nucleus gigantocellularis (NGC) and magnocellularis (NMC), plays a role as a relay nucleus for both the sensory and motor systems. The NGC / NMC is important in the modulation of somatic and visceral activities. Electrophysiological and pharmacological studies have shown that the NGC / NMC is involved in nociception, locomotion, regulation of basal muscle tone, sleep, a Read More

The pharmacological basis of changes in human behaviour and associated cortical reorganization remains poorly understood. Different paradigms have been introduced to alter motor and somatosensory skills in humans. The underlying changes in synaptic efficacy can be modulated by pharmacological agents acting to gate synaptic plasticity. Non-invasive imaging techniques offer the possibility to assess parallel change Read More

Opioids produce a number of acute effects, notably antinociception and euphoria, whereas chronic use produces tolerance and dependence. Mu opioid receptors (MOR) mediate opioid antinociception and reinforcement and are distributed throughout the CNS in regions consistent with their acute effects, including striatum, thalamus, amygdala, periaqueductal gray (PAG), locus coeruleus (LC), and spinal cord. G-protein-coupl Read More

Hypoxia, which is a lowered physiological oxygen tension, is an important biological signal as well as a component of many diseases. In central nervous system, hypoxia is associated with brain injury following the ischemic stroke. Recent studies indicate that hypoxia may not only induce a direct neuronal damage, but it may also initiate inflammatory responses by activating microglia. Toxic inflammatory mediators produce Read More