Hot Off the Press! – August 2017
Gomez, Juan L; Bonaventura, Jordi; Lesniak, Wojciech; Mathews, William B; Sysa-Shah, Polina; Rodriguez, Lionel A; Ellis, Randall J; Richie, Christopher T; Harvey, Brandon K; Dannals, Robert F; Pomper, Martin G; Bonci, Antonello; Michaelides, Michael
Science, 357 (6350), pp. 503–507, 2017, ISSN: 1095-9203 (Electronic); 0036-8075 (Linking).
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News Main
The Novel Modafinil Analog, JJC8-016, as a Potential Cocaine Abuse Pharmacotherapeutic.
Featured Paper of the Month – August 2017
Published in Neuropsychopharmacology by Zhang, Hai-Ying; Bi, Guo-Hua; Yang, Hong-Ju; He, Yi; Xue, Gilbert; Cao, Jiajing; Tanda, Gianluigi; Gardner, Eliot L; Newman, Amy Hauck; Xi, Zheng-Xiong
(+/-)Modafinil ((+/-)MOD) and its R-enantiomer (R-modafinil; R-MOD) have been investigated for their potential as treatments for psychostimulant addiction. We recently reported a series of (+/-)MOD analogs, of which JJC8-016 (N-(2-((bis(4-fluorophenyl)methyl)thio)ethyl)-3-phenylpropan-1-amine) was selected for further development. JJC8-016 and R-MOD were evaluated for binding across ~70 receptors, transporters, and enzymes…
Local Cues Establish and Maintain Region-Specific Phenotypes of Basal Ganglia Microglia.
Hot Off the Press! – July 2017
Biase, Lindsay De M; Schuebel, Kornel E; Fusfeld, Zachary H; Jair, Kamwing; Hawes, Isobel A; Cimbro, Raffaello; Zhang, Hai-Ying; Liu, Qing-Rong; Shen, Hui; Xi, Zheng-Xiong; Goldman, David; Bonci, Antonello
Neuron, 95 (2), pp. 341–356, 2017, ISSN: 1097-4199 (Electronic); 0896-6273 (Linking).
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Synthesis and Pharmacological Characterization of Novel trans-Cyclopropylmethyl-Linked Bivalent Ligands That Exhibit Selectivity and Allosteric Pharmacology at the Dopamine D3 Receptor (D3R).
Featured Paper of the Month – July 2017
Published in The Journal of Medical Chemistry by Kumar, Vivek; Moritz, Amy E; Keck, Thomas M; Bonifazi, Alessandro; Ellenberger, Michael P; Sibley, Christopher D; Free, Benjamin R; Shi, Lei; Lane, Robert J; Sibley, David R; Newman, Amy Hauck
The development of bitopic ligands directed toward D2-like receptors has proven to be of particular interest to improve the selectivity and/or affinity of these ligands and as an approach to modulate and bias their efficacies. The structural similarities between dopamine D3 receptor (D3R)-selective molecules that display bitopic or allosteric pharmacology and those that are simply competitive antagonists are subtle and intriguing…
Ventral tegmental area: cellular heterogeneity, connectivity and behaviour.
Reviews To Read – June 2017
Morales, Marisela; Margolis, Elyssa B
Nat Rev Neurosci, 18 (2), pp. 73–85, 2017, ISSN: 1471-0048 (Electronic); 1471-003X (Linking).
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Neural Signatures of Cognitive Flexibility and Reward Sensitivity Following Nicotinic Receptor Stimulation in Dependent Smokers: A Randomized Trial.
Hot Off the Press! – June 2017
Lesage, Elise; Aronson, Sarah E; Sutherland, Matthew T; Ross, Thomas J; Salmeron, Betty Jo; Stein, Elliot A
JAMA Psychiatry, 74 (6), pp. 632–640, 2017, ISSN: 2168-6238 (Electronic); 2168-622X (Linking).
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Lateral Habenula Involvement in Impulsive Cocaine Seeking
Featured Paper of the Month – June 2017
Published in Neuropsychopharmacology by Zapata, Agustin; Hwang, Eun-Kyung; Lupica, Carl R
The lateral habenula (LHb) is a brain structure receiving inputs from limbic forebrain areas and innervating major midbrain monoaminergic nuclei. Evidence indicates LHb involvement in sleep control, reward-based decision making, avoidance of punishment, and responses to stress. Additional work has established that the LHb mediates negative feedback in response to aversive events…
2017 NIDA IRP Mentoring Award Winners
May 2017 Congratulations to the 2017 NIDA IRP Mentoring Award winners! Award recipients are (left to right): Geoffrey Schoenbaum, MD, PhD (Investigator Award); Lindsay De Biase, PhD (Postdoctoral Fellow Award); and Karran Phillips, MD (Staff Clinician Award). They were presented with plaques at the 6th annual NIDA Poster Day and Mentoring Awards Ceremony on May… [Read More]
Computational approaches to detect allosteric pathways in transmembrane molecular machines.
Reviews To Read – May 2017
Stolzenberg, Sebastian; Michino, Mayako; LeVine, Michael V; Weinstein, Harel; Shi, Lei
Biochim Biophys Acta, 1858 (7 Pt B), pp. 1652-1662, 2016, ISSN: 0006-3002 (Print); 0006-3002 (Linking).
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Functional μ-Opioid-Galanin Receptor Heteromers in the Ventral Tegmental Area.
Featured Paper of the Month – May 2017
Published in The Journal of Neuroscience by Estefania Moreno, Cesar Quiroz, William Rea, Ning-Sheng Cai, Josefa Mallol, Antoni Cortes, Carme Lluis, Enric I Canela, Vicent Casado, Sergi Ferré
The neuropeptide galanin has been shown to interact with the opioid system. More specifically, galanin counteracts the behavioral effects of the systemic administration of mu-opioid receptor (MOR) agonists. Yet the mechanism responsible for this galanin-opioid interaction has remained elusive…



