The Kappa Opioid Receptor Is Associated With Naltrexone-Induced Reduction of Drinking and Craving
de Laat B, Goldberg A, Shi J, Tetrault JM, Nabulsi N, Zheng MQ, Najafzadeh S, Gao H, Kapinos M, Ropchan J, O'Malley SS, Huang Y, Morris ED, Krishnan-Sarin S. The Kappa Opioid Receptor Is Associated With Naltrexone-Induced Reduction of Drinking and Craving. Biological Psychiatry 2019, 86: 864-871. PMID: 31399255, DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2019.05.021.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsKappa-opioid receptorsAlcohol use disorderOpioid receptorsUse disordersNonselective opioid receptor antagonistModest clinical effectsEfficacy of naltrexoneOpioid receptor antagonistDSM-IV criteriaPositron emission tomographyAlcohol Urge QuestionnaireNaltrexone initiationNaltrexone therapyClinical effectsReceptor antagonistTherapeutic effectCingulate cortexDrinking paradigmHeavy drinkersBilateral insulaNaltrexoneAlcohol dependenceBrain regionsEmission tomographyPrefrontal cortex