Director's Report to the National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse
February, 2001
Publications
Bringing the Power of Science to Bear on Drug Abuse and Addiction: Five Year Strategic Plan 2000
NIH Pub. No. 00-4774
NIDA's strategic plan serves as a framework for the Institute's scientific future. The overarching goal of NIDA's strategic plan is to significantly reduce the behavior, health and social consequences of drug abuse and addiction. It provides the reader with a three-pronged approach as to how NIDA will fulfill its goal over the next five years: to provide communities science based tools to prevent drug abuse and addiction; to use scientific activities to improve the quality of drug abuse treatment nationwide; and to disseminate research discoveries to educate the public about the true nature of drug abuse and addiction.
The toolbox is a collection of materials based on NIDA-supported research, including the first three in a series of drug treatment therapy manuals and NIDA's recent publication, Principles of Drug Addiction Treatment: A Research-Based Guide. It also includes several of NIDA's recent Research Reports and other information products.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has collaborated with Native experts and organizations across the country to create an inspirational and education calendar, "Walking a Good Path," on drug abuse and addiction. Every month features a powerful image, an insightful quote, and useful information to help American Indian and Alaska Native parents and elders speak to children about the dangers of drug use.
NIDA NOTES
The lead story in this issue reports on NIDA research that has found that, in mice, methamphetamine causes more extensive brain damage than previously thought. NIDA's research to reverse the damaging effects of methamphetamine on the brain is also featured. In the Director's Column, Dr. Leshner talks about how NIDA's research seeks to discover how different drugs damage the brain and what can be done to treat this damage. Other articles discuss the gender differences in drug abuse risk and treatment, prevalence of drug abuse, and opportunities to use drugs. Other topics discussed in this issue include a report on how doses of anabolic steroids can cause adverse psychiatric symptoms in men; a report of a conference on the linked issues of drug abuse, HIV/AIDS, and hepatitis C; and the release of clinical guidelines for treating nicotine addiction.
The lead story reports on NIDA research on a vaccine that prevents nicotine from reaching the brains of rats and that may offer hope for smokers trying to break their addiction. In the Director's Column, Dr. Leshner talks about scientific approaches to combat nicotine addiction. Other articles discuss prenatal exposure to cigarette smoke, which appears to increase risk of drug abuse on conduct disorder; a genetic variation that makes some individuals less liable to become addicted to nicotine; findings that nicotine craving increases craving for other drugs among drug abusers; and a new approach that relieves chronic pain without adverse effects. Other topics include a national media campaign to impress young people that drugs can permanently damage health and highlights of recent gains by NIDA-funded researchers in knowledge about nicotine and tobacco.
The lead story in this issue reports on the first seven treatment protocols approved and put into placed by NIDA's National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN). In the Director's Column, Dr. Leshner discusses the importance of blending drug abuse research and clinical practice to improve treatment and cites the accomplishments of the CTN in its first year of operation. Another story lists the five new research sites added to the CTN and another describes the Clinical Toolbox, which was mailed to more than 12,000 practitioners across the country. Other stories discuss rat brain changes due to cue-induced craving for opiates; NIDA staff and grantee participation in the 11th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health; NIDA's involvement in two conferences in South Africa on HIV/AIDS and drug abuse; and how the research of this year's Nobel Prize winners in Medicine provided the foundation for understanding how drugs affect the brain. Other stories report on the appointment of Dr. Glen Hanson as the Director of the Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research; abuse of opioids by steroid users; acupuncture as a treatment for cocaine abuse; and the latest Research Report on inhalant abuse.
Other Publications
Oyler, J.M., Cone, E.J., Joseph, R.E. Jr., and Huestis, M.A. Identification of Hydrocodone in Human Urine Following Controlled Codeine Administration, Journal of Analytical Toxicology; 24, pp. 530-535, 2000.
Moolchan, E.T., Cone, E.J., Wtsadik, A., Huestis, M.A., and Preston, K.L. Cocaine and Metabolite Elimination Patterns in Chronic Cocaine Users During Cessation: Plasma and Saliva Analysis. Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 24, pp. 458-466, 2000.
Huestis, M.A., Cone, E.J., Wong, C.J., Umbricht, A. and Preston, K.L. Monitoring Opiate Use in Substance Abuse Treatment Patients by Sweat and Urine Testing. Journal of Analytical Toxicology,24, pp. 509-521, 2000.
Ladenheim, B., Krasnova, I.N., Deng, X., Oyler, J.M., Polettini, A., Moran, T.H., Huestis, M.A. and Cadet, J.L. Methamphetamine-Induced Neurotoxicity Is Attenuated in Transgenic Mice with a Null Mutation for Interleukin-6. Mol Pharmacol 58(6), pp. 1247-1256, 2000.
Deng, X. and Cadet, J.L. Methamphetamine-induced Apoptosis is Attenuated in the Striata of Copper-Zinc Superoxide Dismutase Transgenic Mice. Mol Brain Res 83(1-2), pp. 121-124, 2000.
Sharpe, L.G., Pilotte, N.S., Shippenberg, T.S., Goodman, C.B. and London, E.D. Autoradiographic Evidence that Prolonged Withdrawal from Intermittent Cocaine Reduces Mu-Opioid Receptor Expression in the Limbic Regions of the Rat Brain. Synapse, 37, pp. 292-297, 2000.
Tudge, J.R.H., Hogan, D.M., Snezhkova, I.A., Kulakova, N.N., and Etz, K.E. Parents' Child-Rearing Values and Beliefs in the United States and Russia: The Impact of Culture and Social Class. Infant and Child Development, 9, pp. 105-121, 2000.
Drs. David Shurtleff, Herb Weingartner, Susan Volman and Karen Skinner coordinated NIDA's written contribution and support of a supplement to Nature Neuroscience entitled "Computational Approaches to Brain Function," which was published in November 2000. The supplement publication was also sponsored by, NIMH, NINDS, and NIAAA. The issue covers the history and current state of computational neuroscience, and each of the supporting NIH institutes describes their interests in computational neuroscience with NIDA describing its emerging interests in this area. Approximately 5,000 copies of the supplement were distributed at the November 2000 Society for Neuroscience meeting in New Orleans, and additional copies will be mailed to Nature Neuroscience subscribers. The entire text of the supplement is available on-line at: http://www.nature.com/neuro/journal/v3/n11s/full/nn1100_1160.html
Jag H. Khalsa, Sander Genser, and Henry Francis of CAMCODA and Bernadette Marriott of the Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS), NIH, co-authored/co-edited a major publication entitled: Metabolic, Endocrine, and Gastrointestinal (MEG) Disorders in Drug Abuse and HIV/AIDS that appeared in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes (JAIDS), 25: supplement 1, October, 2000. The supplement consists of an introduction (Khalsa et al.) and 12 chapters contributed by nationally and internationally recognized experts in the field of HIV/AIDS and drug abuse who participated in a NIDA/ODS-supported workshop.
The second quarterly news update for the CTN was published in October. The quarterly newsletter was distributed to all CTN nodes and posted on the CTN web page.
A revised CTN web page was approved and posted to NIDA's Home Page in December. The new site includes information on the first 11 nodes, patient and clinician information, CTN newsletters, and copies of protocol brochures. Plans are underway to have a Spanish version of this website.
Eight new brochures were published this period. Six of the publications are patient brochures on the current CTN protocols. Two of the brochures are directed towards clinicians. Two of the above patient brochures have been translated into Spanish and have been approved for distribution. Three other Spanish translations are in the process of being approved. Plans have been made to translate the patient brochures into both Chinese and Russian to serve those patient populations.
A weekly CTN Bulletin Board was issued as a result of the CTN communication plan. It is a one-page highlight of CTN weekly activities issued every Tuesday.
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