Research Finds Drug Abuse Associated With Instinctive Need For Salt
A study recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences sheds new light on the mechanism of addiction to cocaine and opiate drugs such as heroin. A team combining neuroscientists from Duke University Medical Center and Melbourne University observed the effects in the brains of rodents who had been depleted of salt. The results were surprising and led to discoveries that may help move the understanding and treatment of addiction forward as well as proposes many new exciting questions for future research.
Gene Patterns for Salt Appetite are the Same as Those for Cocaine and Opiate Addiction
The hypothalamus is an area of the brain that is in charge of the most basic instincts including the regulation of salt, water and reproduction. This was the part of the brain targeted for the understanding of gene regulation of salt appetite and its influence on addiction.
The group of researchers deprived rodents of salt and in addition flushed their system with diuretics and increased the hormone ACTH (which increases the necessity for salt). All of these factors left the animals in an extreme sodium-depleted condition. The team was able to tell which genes in the salt appetite pathway were active and which were inactive. In less than 10 minutes of allowing the rodents to drink a salt solution, these gene patterns were significantly altered. Oddly, this was nowhere near the amount of time needed for a substantial amount of salt to be absorbed into the bloodstream.
The rapid satisfaction of the need for salt is an interesting finding that begs more research. Some of the scientists theorized that the speed with which the salt appetite genes became “satisfied” is a survival mechanism in the wild. An animal can drink a salty liquid fast thus increasing their chances of avoiding a predator.
How This Research Affects the Understanding of Addiction
This study showed the gene patterns involved in the salt instinct were the same as that for cocaine and opiate addiction. One of the lead researchers, Professor Derek Denton of the Florey Neuroscience Institute, believes, at the end of the day, instincts are just genetic patterns that can be affected by learning. When a pattern is functioning any experiences occurring simultaneously may become incorporated into the same neural pathway and affect behavior. In the case of drug addiction, the firmly established gene patterns of the instinct for salt are overtaken and used for these additional destructive behaviors.
If you or someone you care about has a cocaine or opiate addiction we can help. Call us today and discuss all the options for drug addiction treatment available to you here at Michael’s House in Palm Springs, California. A positive change is just a phone call away.
