Ibogaine signals addiction genes and methamphetamine alteration of long-term potentiation.
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences June 1, 2002 Emmanuel S Onaivi, Syed F Ali, Sanika S Chirwa et al. 23 citations
Mapping the human genetic code may help identify genes involved in addictions. Microarray technologies have linked specific genes to diseases. Pharmacological treatments for addiction have been largely disappointing, prompting interest in the controversial natural alkaloid ibogaine. Research on gene expression and signaling molecules in rat brain models shows that psychostimulants like methamphetamine and cocaine alter long-term potentiation in the hippocampus, possibly creating a threshold beyond which excessive brain stimulation occludes LTP. Ibogaine broadly regulates these signal transduction pathways and influences immediate early genes, suggesting it may signal addiction-related gene products, though further evaluation is needed.