Past NIDA Notes Articles

Commemorates NIDA’s 35th anniversary and highlights some of the major accomplishments since the Institute’s inception in 1974.

Announces NIDA Notes’ first place 2009 award that salutes superior communications efforts of government agencies.

Compares data on substance abuse and sexual risk among college students and their peers who do not attend college.

Describes the American Board of Addiction Medicine’s new program offering certification to physicians in addiction medicine.

Reports study results suggesting that genes for several acetylcholine receptor proteins influence early smoking responses and the likelihood of nicotine dependence.

Describes findings of a study revealing that images of heroin preparation and injection can incite craving and excite brain areas associated with reward-seeking even in methadone-maintained patients.

Highlights the disproportionately high rate of Americans who have used cocaine at some time during their lives as compared with other nations surveyed.

Describes research providing evidence that genes may influence how successful a person is in quitting smoking and which cessation technique may work best for them.

Describes clinical trial results providing evidence that methadone maintenance to men in prison can pay off in better retention in community treatment and reduced drug abuse following their release.

Describes research on the effectiveness of a buprenorphine patch to alleviate opioid withdrawal symptoms of newly abstinent heroin abusers.

Describes research providing evidence that chronic methamphetamine abuse is associated with increased microglial cell activity in the brain leading to neurodegeneration.

Highlights findings from a study showing that nicotine triggers a surge in levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine in the brain's main reward area for cigarette smokers.

Highlights data on the prevalence of people entering substance abuse treatment programs who also reported having at least one co-occurring mental health problem.

Discusses the work of NIDA’s Division of Epidemiology, Services and Prevention Research, organized to track drug use and provide empirically based information for researchers and service providers.

Reports on a new device that creates tiny painless punctures in the skin to allow medication to flow evenly from a skin patch into dermal capillaries and the bloodstream.

Reports an animal study presenting evidence that cocaine causes cognitive deficits that can persist well into abstinence.

Highlights the need for research to assess and find solutions to a potential rise in substance abuse among service men and women, veterans, and their families.

Discusses the work of researchers who have begun to harness the potential of computers to reinforce and expand upon the well-established benefits of recovery therapy delivered by a counselor.

Announces the 2009 high school student recipients of the Addiction Science Awards and describes their winning addiction-focused projects.

Announces the addition of three new members to NIDA’s National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse.

Highlights activities held during Brain Awareness Week for students in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC, to learn about brain anatomy and function.

Announces the recipient of a 2009 award for innovation in research on drug addiction and alcoholism whose research focuses on the cellular changes that occur in response to chronic cocaine abuse.

Reports animal study findings on development of an antibody fragment that rapidly removes methamphetamine from the brain and discusses implications for treatment of overdose.

Highlights prevalence rates of cigarette and marijuana smoking among teens who exercise regularly as compared with their less active peers.

Highlights trends from a 2008 survey of teenage substance abuse, cigarette smoking and alcohol use and discusses the implications of these changing data.

Highlights research showing methamphetamine abusers may have more difficulty than nonabusers in responding with empathy and self-control to people who are experiencing intense emotions.

Describes study findings revealing that the act of smoking, apart from actual or expected nicotine delivery, may soothe a smoker's negative mood.

Describes research showing that cocaine abusers appear to have a rapid neural response to reward cues outside of their awareness, possibly signifying vulnerability to relapse.

Reports on a study investigating the effectiveness of a combined therapy of disulfiram and naltrexone for people who abuse cocaine and alcohol.

Presents highlights of a meeting summit to discuss ways to eliminate disparities in care, particularly as they relate to drug abuse and HIV.

Announces the recipients of the inaugural Avant-Garde Award for research to prevent and treat HIV/AIDS in drug abusers, Drs. Julio Montaner, Ileana Cristea, and Jerome Groopman.

Highlights NIDA’s second annual Chat Day where NIDA scientists and staff responded to drug abuse and addiction questions from teachers and students.

Reports on a discovery of previously unrecognized dopamine receptors in the brain that when triggered by drug abuse lead to potentially long-term neuronal effects.

Reports on a study involving adolescent girls who were treated for delinquent behaviors in a well-supervised family setting, referred to as Multidimensional Treatment Foster Care.

Reports on an animal study suggesting that the manic stage of bipolar disorder promotes signs of drug abuse vulnerability by enhancing sensitivity to rewards, both natural and drug-related.

Reports on research providing evidence that teaching aggressive youngsters social coping skills reduces their chances of becoming substance abusers.

Describes research exploring differences and similarities in the genetic profiles of African-Americans and European-Americans who are heavy smokers.

Highlights NIDA-sponsored research underway to understand and respond to substance abusers’ needs at all points of care, from the initial presentation for treatment through recovery.

Describes research revealing that for up to 6 weeks after smokers quit, their brain cells have more nicotine-binding receptors than nonsmokers, which may explain the struggle to quit.

Examines the incidence of high school seniors’ alcohol- or drug-related driving experiences based on 2001 through 2006 data.

Highlights an animal study involving the self-administration of nicotine among adolescent and adult rats to gain understanding of their potential vulnerability to the substance.

Reports on NIDA researchers who developed a new tracer compound that binds readily to nicotine receptors and enhances positron emission tomography images.

Reports on a study of men with co-occurring substance abuse and antisocial personality disorders and the potential benefit of judicially mandated addiction treatment.

Reports on a series of animal experiments indicating that nicotine exposure during prenatal fetal development damages a set of receptors in the brain's auditory processing center.

Presents data on the length of stay in substance abuse treatment among people who were in treatment as a result of legal pressure as compared with those in treatment voluntarily.

Highlights a project in which nine research centers collaborate with criminal justice partners to test science-based tools for integrating drug abuse treatment in prisons and probation and parole programs.

Highlights findings from a study of former methamphetamine abusers showing evidence of impairment in areas of the brain known to influence cognition, emotion, and decision making.

Describes findings from an animal study showing that cocaine lowers availability of dopamine receptors in the basal ganglia, an area of the brain that includes portions of the reward system.

Describes NIDA’s drug abuse and addiction research priorities for the use of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 funds.

Describes a study among people who had sustained brain injuries to investigate whether certain damaged areas of the brain are associated with the ability to quit smoking.