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New drug may keep you sober no matter how much you've had to drink
Chinese tree extract has long been used as a hangover cure. Now it is being turned into a 'sobriety pill' that could cure alcoholism.
Tue, Jan 10 2012 at 2:18 AM
DRINK UP: It won't make any difference. (Photo: The Shopping Sherpa/Flickr)
Imagine a pill that could instantly sober you up no matter how much you've had to drink, or a hangover cure that worked minutes after swallowing it. Hardened drinkers rejoice: researchers are about to begin human trials on an "alcohol antidote" that may soon offer a cure to alcoholism, reports New Scientist.
The drug is a chemical called dihydromyricetin, or DHM, and is derived from a Chinese variety of the oriental raisin tree, which has been used for at least 500 years in China as an effective hangover cure. So far the extract has only been tested on boozing rats, but with promising results.
"DHM will reduce the degree of drunkenness for the amount of alcohol drunk and will definitely reduce the hangover symptoms," said Jing Liang, lead researcher in the study. "In time, it will reduce [an alcoholic's] desire for alcohol."
Liang first tested how well DHM alleviated drunken rats' clumsiness and loss of coordination by measuring how long it took them to right themselves after being laid on their backs. Rats were injected with an alcohol equivalent of a human drinking 15 to 20 beers in two hours to ensure that they were sufficiently wasted. As one would expect, it took the rats about 70 minutes just to get back up on their feet. After a milligram of DHM (per kilogram of rat body weight) was added to the mixture, however, the rats were able to right themselves in just five minutes.
The rats were next tested within a maze to see how well DHM neutralized hangover symptoms. Rats with a hangover typically react by cowering away in the corners of a maze, seemingly lacking motivation to seek an endpoint. But once those rats were given an appropriate dosage of DHM, their inquisitiveness was revived and they reacted just as rats that were given no alcohol at all.
Lastly, Liang tested whether DHM could cure alcohol addiction in rats. Boozy rodents were given a choice of drinking a sweetened solution of alcohol or sweetened water. Over a period of three months with DHM treatment, rats drank only a quarter the amount of alcohol that rats given no treatment drank.
Provided that the drug works as effectively in humans as it does in rats, DHM could be a breakthrough in the fight against alcoholism. But some researchers are concerned that it could eventually lead to more drinking rather than less. For instance, development of a similar compound called Ro15-4513 was abandoned several years ago due in part to such concerns.
"There was a lot of philosophical worry that an 'alcohol antidote' would entice people to consume alcohol and then count on being able to terminate the intoxicating effects on demand," said Markus Heilig, clinical director of the U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
It's certainly easy to imagine how such a drug could be abused. Drinkers could become intoxicated, then take a pill when it comes time to drive themselves home. Hangovers would also no longer be a deterrent to imbibing. But for those struggling to overcome an alcohol addiction — not to mention the 2.5 million people who are estimated to die every year due to alcoholism — the drug could be a godsend and well worth the risks.
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I may have skipped over it but I didn't see that it repairs the liver and other affects caused by the drinking.
This is a terrible idea, all it will do is make people drink more to get drunk, increasing their blood alcohol levels to toxicity, thereby killing them....I guess in a way this could work to cure something the same way a shotgun to the head can "cure" any aliment or disease.
Bzzz.... wrong.
The only cure for alcoholism is abstinence, one day at a time.
A lot of people are commenting on what people "might" do with this drug, as justification for not bringing it to market. What happened to personal responsibility? You could also say that many medicines should be banned because people "might" misuse them.
This drug may well be a boon to help alcoholics stop drinking OVER TIME (yes, it will take more than one night), but if some other idiot chooses to misuse it then that is not justification for not allowing anyone to benefit.
Whether it requires 70 minutes or 5 minutes to exit the vehicle after being asked to do so by a cop; that's still DUI.
I find the "drunken rats" experiment disturbing. That's just cruel to intoxicate those helpless creatures, put them on their backs, and see how long it takes them to get up. There must be a better way to test new drugs!
I'll do it!
Lol! Let's hope it doesn't cause cancer like everything else.
I'll do it!
How do you think potential drug candidates are tested? They must be proven safe in rats before they will start testing in humans. Do you suggest they bypass rat testing and just start testing in humans? Do you know how many humans would then be subject to severe side effects or even death? Trust me, the world is over-populated with rats and I would certainly want to have new drugs tested on rats to see how they react prior to testing in humans.
Someone said people would take it to sober up before driving home. What's wrong with that?
"Used for 500 years"
I think this line should get rid of everyone's concerns.
I can imagine the only thing this drug can do, is cause death, alcoholic poisoning. After taking the pill, people will drink more because they will still want to feel drunk. People will keep drinking until their heart stops.
Well..........that WOULD stop alcoholism...........
What scares me is that someone could use it at a bar or party as a way to stay sober, but appear to be drinking as much as everyone else. Twould be an ultimate armament for a serial rapist.
well i guess your have plans for this weekend?
"But for those struggling to overcome an alcohol addiction — not to mention the 2.5 million people who are estimated to die every year due to alcoholism — the drug could be a godsend and well worth the risks."
In what world is having the scientific possibility of greatly reducing drunk driving (or the epic hangover) a "risk" that is to be suffered?
No alcoholic will want a pill to make them feel sober. They chose to feel drunk. They will end up drinking more alcohol to feel the drunken state.they're looking for. If they take the drug that will lessen the effects, they will end up drinking themselves to death. It's not going to work the way people think it will.
sounds like an episode of "Shameless".
I think this miracle remedy has already been discovered. It's called Cocaine!
great, now how am i going to convince a girl to sleep with me if she's not intoxicated.
signed,
unattractive guy
As a bartender I am gonna try my hardest to find away around this!
The pill might stymie the physical symptoms, but it will not stop a dependence or addiction from developing. Dependence will develop faster if the drinking experience is all good, no bad with this pill. Skip the liquid courage and find some real courage instead.
If it has been used for 500 years in China why are they testing RATS?
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