Esmaili-Shahzade-Ali-Akbari P, Ghaderi A, Hosseini SMM, Nejat F, Saeedi-Mofrad M, Karimi-Houyeh M, Ghattan A, Etemadi A, Rasoulian E, Khezri A. β_lactam antibiotics against drug addiction: A novel therapeutic option.
Drug Dev Res 2023;
84:1411-1426. [PMID:
37602907 DOI:
10.1002/ddr.22110]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2022] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/06/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023]
Abstract
Drug addiction as a problem for the health of the individual and the society is the result of a complex process in which there is an interaction between brain nuclei and neurotransmitters (such as glutamate). β-lactam antibiotics, due to their enhancing properties on the glutamate transporter glutamate transporter-1, can affect and counteract the addictive mechanisms of drugs through the regulation of extracellular glutamate. Since glutamate is a key neurotransmitter in the development of drug addiction, it seems that β-lactams can be considered as a promising treatment for addiction. However, more research in this field is necessary to identify other mechanisms involved in their effectiveness. This article is a review of the studies conducted on the effect of β-lactam administration in preventing the development of drug addiction, as well as their possible cellular and molecular mechanisms. This review suggests the clinical use of β-lactam antibiotics that have weak antimicrobial properties (such as clavulanic acid) in the treatment of drug dependence.
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