[Advances in Immunotherapy for Drug Addiction]

Zhongguo Yi Xue Ke Xue Yuan Xue Bao. 2021 Feb 28;43(1):116-123. doi: 10.3881/j.issn.1000-503X.11591.
[Article in Chinese]

Abstract

Drug addiction is a major worldwide medical and social problem.Cocaine,nicotine,methamphetamine,heroin and other psychoactive substances,with small molecular weight,can easily cross the blood-brain barrier and eventually lead to addiction and other serious neuropsychological damage.There is no effective cure for addiction currently.The drug-antibody complex formed on the basis of active or passive immunotherapy could not cross the blood-brain barrier,which reduces the concentration of the free active drug and prevents its distribution in the brain,thereby weakening the drug addiction-related reward effects.It provides a promising way for the treatment of drug addiction.This article reviews the progress of immunotherapy against psychoactive substances such as cocaine,nicotine,methamphetamine and heroin in the past 50 years from the aspects of active immunity,passive immunity,drug metabolism-related enzymes,adjuvants and so on.The goal is to provide some ideas for the development of agents for the treatment of psychoactive substance addiction.

Keywords: active immunization; drug addiction; immunotherapy; passive immunity.

Publication types

  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Cocaine*
  • Humans
  • Immunotherapy
  • Methamphetamine*
  • Nicotine
  • Substance-Related Disorders* / therapy

Substances

  • Methamphetamine
  • Nicotine
  • Cocaine