Stress, larger home affect cocaine use

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C., April 8 (UPI) -- Increased stress -- or conversely nicer environments -- may affect the amount of cocaine use, U.S. researchers suggest.

Wake Forest University School of Medicine researchers built on their findings that monkeys naturally stratify and lower strata monkeys are more likely to self-administer cocaine.

Michael Nader and colleagues exposed 24 cynomolgus macaques, a primate native to Southeast Asia -- to larger-than-normal cages and the stress of being placed next to another social group and gave them the choice of intravenous cocaine or food pellets.

The stress and the nicer home life reduced the drug response of all the animals, but the detrimental affect of the stress -- more drug intake, less food -- was more prominent in the subordinate monkeys.

"This is very significant, first, it is a result that could be directly applied to the human situation," Nader said in a statement. "It suggests that a better environment could alleviate at least some of the risk that individuals will turn to drugs. Secondly, we are talking about just a slightly improved living condition. Imagine what the effect could be with higher quality enrichment, such as interesting activities."

Nader presented the findings at the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at the Experimental Biology 2008 scientific conference in San Diego.