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Researchers Receive NIDA Grant to Study Nonhallucinogenic Compounds to Treat SUD
Researchers from the University of California, Davis, and the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus have announced plans to screen hundreds of compounds to identify nonhallucinogenic treatments for substance use disorders.
The research is being supported by a $2.7 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).
While previous research has demonstrated the potential of psychedelic drugs to rewire parts of the brain that are involved in depression, substance use, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the UC Davis and Colorado researchers will look to identify “psychoplastogens”—compounds that can produce similar brain-modifying results without hallucinogenic effects of psychedelic drugs.
“I’m very excited that NIDA is recognizing the potential that psychoplastogens might have for patients with substance use disorders,” David Olson, associate professor in the UC Davis departments of chemistry, and biochemistry and molecular medicine, said in a news release. “This grant will help us to understand the basic mechanisms by which these compounds impact addiction, and hopefully develop more effective and better tolerated treatments.”
The news release noted that Delix Therapeutics, a startup founded by Olson, is separately investigating nonhallucinogenic psychoplastogens to treat depression, anxiety, and related disorders.
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