This special issue is a tribute to our mentor, colleague and friend, Gavril W. Pasternak, MD, PhD. Homage to the breadth and depth of his work (~ 450 publications) over a 40 career in pharmacology and medicine cannot be captured fully in one special issue, but the 22 papers collected herein represent seven of the topics near and dear to Gav's heart, and the colleagues, friends and mentees who held him near to theirs. The seven themes include: (1) sites and mechanisms of opioid actions in vivo; (2) development of novel analgesic agents; (3) opioid tolerance, withdrawal and addiction: mechanisms and treatment; (4) opioid receptor splice variants; (5) novel research tools and approaches; (6) receptor signaling and crosstalk in vitro; and (7) mentorship. This introduction to the issue summarizes contributions and includes formal and personal remembrances of Gav that illustrate his personality, warmth, and dedication to making a difference in patient care and people's lives.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10571-021-01097-0 | DOI Listing |
Pharmaceuticals (Basel)
January 2025
Department of Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA 91766, USA.
There is clinical concern about the combined use of alcohol and opiates. Several lines of evidence support an interaction between alcohol and the endogenous opioid system. Thus, we hypothesized that ethanol, by causing the release of opioid peptides, may sensitize the system to the action of exogenous opioids such as morphine.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFImplement Sci Commun
January 2025
IWK Health and Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada.
Background: Implementation Science research completed with equity-deserving populations is not well understood or explored. The current opioid epidemic challenges healthcare systems to improve existing practices through implementation of evidence-based interventions. Pregnant persons diagnosed with opioid use disorder (OUD) is an equity-deserving population that continues to experience stigmatization within our healthcare system.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNat Commun
January 2025
Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy, University of the Pacific, Stockton, CA, US.
The opioid crisis, driven by synthetic opioids like fentanyl, demands innovative solutions. The opioid antidote naloxone has a short action ( ~ 1 hour), requiring repeated doses. To address this, we present a new and simple naloxone prodrug delivery system repurposing a hydrophilic derivative of acoramidis, a potent transthyretin ligand.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCell Mol Life Sci
January 2025
Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA.
The current opioid crisis has had an unprecedented public health impact. Approved medications for opioid use disorder (OUD) exist, yet their limitations indicate a need for innovative treatments. Limited preliminary clinical studies suggest specific psychedelics might aid OUD treatment, though most clinical evidence remains observational, with few controlled trials.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProg Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry
January 2025
School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. Electronic address:
The opioid crisis continues to escalate, disproportionately affecting women of reproductive age. Traditionally the first line of treatment for pregnant women with opioid use disorder is the mu-opioid receptor agonist methadone. However, in recent years, the use of buprenorphine as a replacement therapy has increased as it has fewer side-effects and longer duration of action.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!