Scientists identify the protein DeltaFosB as the "master switch" that rewires the brain's memory and reward circuits, driving chronic cocaine addiction and relapse.

Addiction is one of the most intensely studied conditions in modern medicine, yet even with high‑resolution brain scans and genetic tools, scientists still cannot fully explain why some people get ...

For years, addiction was seen as a matter of personal failure—a bad habit or a lack of discipline. People believed those who struggled with substance abuse could stop if they simply wanted to. But ...

Researchers have used mouse models to study how cocaine addiction alters the brain, illuminating why relapse is common as ...

Remarkable scientific progress over the past five decades has helped us develop knowledge of how drugs of abuse induce pleasure, reinforce use, and lead to the compulsive self-administration we call ...

Researchers discovered a protein that acts as a molecular switch driving cocaine addiction by altering gene activity in a ...

This article was published in Scientific American’s former blog network and reflects the views of the author, not necessarily those of Scientific American Over the past year and a half, Scientific ...

The murder of Rob Reiner and his wife by their son late last year raised an agonizing question: How is it that loving parents with all the resources in the world cannot save a child (or themselves) ...

Addiction is a condition that has long baffled physicians and philosophers, to say nothing of those struggling with it and those around them. People have long debated whether addiction is a habit or a ...