rat abuse

Incubation of Craving (in rats)

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Changes in neural connections due to substance use and withdrawal are long-lasting, and craving can peak well into abstinence.

Incubation of craving in rats — in other words, an inverted U-shaped curve where craving rises, plateaus and then declines — holds across drug classes. So although it was initially demonstrated for cocaine, incubation of craving occurs in rats after self-administration of methamphetamine, opioids, nicotine and ethanol. Incubation of cue-induced craving has also been demonstrated in humans — so far, this has been shown during abstinence from cocaine, methamphetamine, nicotine and alcohol. So that long plateau phase that we see in the animals is a relevant model for the persistent vulnerability to craving and relapse in humans who are trying to recover from substance use disorder. What addiction does to the brain – https://knowablemagazine.org/content/article/mind/2026/what-addiction-does-to-synapses-in-brain

The article is an interview with Marina Wolf, a behavioral neuroscientist at the Oregon Health & Science University. Good stuff if your brain is into brain stuff.

But Both Are Legal…right? – Updated

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“We found that alcohol and THC together significantly reduced, and in some cases prevented, the ability of the prefrontal cortex in drug-exposed rats to undergo plasticity in the same way that the brains from control animals can,” said Linyuan Shi, a graduate student in the Gulley lab. “The effects were apparent in rats exposed to either drug alone, and they were most pronounced with co-exposure to both drugs. We also found the impaired plasticity was likely due to changes in signaling caused by gamma-aminobutyric acid, a chemical messenger in the brain. When we used a chemical that enhances GABA, it could rescue the deficits we saw in the animals that had been exposed to the drugs.”

Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “Combined use of alcohol and THC can affect rat brains, study finds.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 30 November 2023 — https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/11/231130121946.htm

I’m glad I am not a rat.

Young adults who simultaneously use alcohol and marijuana (SAM) consume more drinks, are high for more hours in the day, and report more negative alcohol-related consequences.

On SAM use days, participants consumed an average of 37% more drinks, with 43% more negative alcohol consequences, were high for 10% more hours, and were more likely to feel clumsy or dizzy, compared with non-SAM use days.

Simultaneous Marijuana, Alcohol Use Linked to Worse Outcomes — https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/996595?icd=login_success_gg_match_norm&isSocial

Hmmm…

But Both Are Legal…right?

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“We found that alcohol and THC together significantly reduced, and in some cases prevented, the ability of the prefrontal cortex in drug-exposed rats to undergo plasticity in the same way that the brains from control animals can,” said Linyuan Shi, a graduate student in the Gulley lab. “The effects were apparent in rats exposed to either drug alone, and they were most pronounced with co-exposure to both drugs. We also found the impaired plasticity was likely due to changes in signaling caused by gamma-aminobutyric acid, a chemical messenger in the brain. When we used a chemical that enhances GABA, it could rescue the deficits we saw in the animals that had been exposed to the drugs.”

Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “Combined use of alcohol and THC can affect rat brains, study finds.” ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 30 November 2023 — https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2023/11/231130121946.htm

I’m glad I am not a rat.