Scientific Council Member Leads Team in Discovery of Mechanism that Links Substance Abuse with Susceptibility to Depression

While most studies focus on brain and behavior disorders as cause for substance abuse (ie., self-medication), Scientific Council Member Eric Nestler, M.D., Ph.D. and colleagues have discovered how substance abuse can actually increase risk for stress-related illness. “Our results provide fundamentally novel insight into how prior exposure to a drug of abuse enhances vulnerability to depression and other stress-related disorders,” says Dr. Nestler. “Identifying such common regulatory mechanisms may aid in the development of new therapies for addiction and depression.”

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