Mice study sheds light on drug dependency
Controversy has surrounded the “gateway hypothesis” – that is, the theory that argues that smoking can lead on to drug dependency down the line. However, a new study on the molecular biology of mice has claimed to uncover evidence in support of this hypothesis. If you are smoker and are worried about the impact cigarettes are making on your body, take advantage of the free advice available at online pharmacies, such as Lloyds Pharmacy. These pharmacies will also be able to point you in the right direction of affordable quit smoking medicines and treatments that may be of use to you.
The study, conducted by Denise Kandel, epidemiologist at Columbia University in New York and founder of the “gateway hypothesis”, her husband neurobiologist Eric Kandel and her colleagues at the institution, revealed that nicotine – the chemical found in the tobacco of cigarettes – caused changes in the gene regulation of the mice, which subsequently enhanced the brain’s response to cocaine.
Amir Levine, a member of the Columbia team, commented on the findings – which focused predominantly on the influence of nicotine in the progression from soft to hard drugs in teens – admitted that other factors might also be at play, but that “adolescence is a time when the brain is very malleable.”
He added: “We wondered if drug-induced brain alterations could have long-term molecular impacts.”