Exendin-4: A Diabetes Medication May Help Cocaine Addicts Quit
Can an existing diabetes drug cure cocaine addiction?
Well, more experiments are needed, but Vanderbilt University researchers say that the diabetes drug Exendin-4, which targets dopamine systems in the brain, may also work against cocaine and meth addiction.
The Experiment
Using animal subjects, the researchers injected Exendin-4 and watched to see how the medication would influence cocaine consumption.
The Results
- The medication, which is simply a synthetic and long lasting version of the peptide hormone GLP-1, blocked the rewarding effects (the high) from cocaine.
- This result occurred regardless of the dose of Exendin-4 given
- There were no noticeable side effects
- Although the drug was only tested against cocaine, the researchers suspect it would also dull the rewarding effects of other psycho-stimulants, like methamphetamine, and that it would work for other disorders which have a dopaminergic component, such as obesity and schizophrenia.
Significance
The researchers say that the findings are significant because:
- The medication is already FDA approved to treat diabetes and so should be easily transferable to addiction medicine.
- There are no existing effective medications for psycho-stimulant addiction
Commentary
Lead researcher Gregg Stanwood, Ph.D noted that since addiction is such a complex disorder in humans it’s unlikely that all people would respond to the medication or that it would ‘cure’ addiction for anyone, stating, "We don't expect this to be a magic bullet where one can simply take this drug and their addiction goes away, but hopefully a medicine like this, in combination with social and behavioral support, will help an addict on the road to recovery."
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