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Researchers claim to have identified a brain circuit that affects alcohol consumption.

And they say that a drug to limit the production of a specific brain molecule, the neurokinin 1 receptor (NK1R), could be a new therapeutic target for alcoholism.

NK1R is known to inhibit the brain's stress response.

The study, carried out by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), was conducted after trials with mice.

It was found that mice that were genetically engineered to lack NK1R consumed much less alcohol than those with fully functional NK1R.

The researchers then experimented on humans with a compound designed to block NK1 receptors and found that it reduced alcohol craving and improved the wellbeing of recently recovered alcohol-dependents with high levels of anxiety.

NIAAA director Ting-Kai Li said: "These findings advance our understanding of the link between stress and alcohol dependence and raise the prospect of a new class of medications for treating alcoholism."

Based in Maryland, the NIAAA, conducts a number of studies exploring the health risks and benefits of alcohol consumption, prevention and treatment.

Article published on 28/02/2008 by DryOutNow.com

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