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Cocaine Vaccine In the Works
Posted by
kdawson
on Thu Jan 03, 2008 12:15 PM
from the runnin-round-my-brain dept.
from the runnin-round-my-brain dept.
martyros writes "Researchers at the Baylor College of Medicine are performing clinical trials of a vaccine that teaches the immune system to attack cocaine, preventing it from giving a high. The vaccine is made by attaching inactivated cocaine molecules to the outside of inactivated cholera proteins. When the immune system attacks the cholera proteins, it also 'learns' the cocaine molecules as well. The result is that the immune system 'recognizes the potent naked drug when it's ingested. The antibodies bind to the cocaine and prevent it from reaching the brain, where it normally would generate the highs that are so addictive.'" An earlier story from The Star notes that human trials for vaccines against both cocaine and nicotine are well under way.
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Anti-Smoking Vaccine Is Nearing the Market 172 comments
eldavojohn writes "Almost 6 years ago we discussed a vaccine to help people quit smoking as it entered human clinical trials. Now it looks like the finishing touches have been put on a deal that will go into effect once phase III testing of the drug now called NicVAX is completed. NicVAX was developed by Nabi Biopharmaceuticals, who have agreed to license it to GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals; it is expected to complete phase III testing successfully. Others have fallen short of this goal, in pursuit of a smoking-cessation market expected to hit $4.6 billion worldwide by 2016. Nabi has also sold an experimental vaccine for staph infections; and in 2008 we discussed news of a cocaine vaccine."
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Analogs (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Analogs (Score:5, Interesting)
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Re:Analogs (Score:5, Informative)
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Or D (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:Or D (Score:5, Funny)
Speaking of..man, this vaccine will really screw up the RIAA, the MIAA...and the rest of hollywood!!
I mean, if you are injected with this...then snorting lines off a hooker's ass, will mean you essentially are paying WAY too much.............
to smell a hookers ass.
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Re:Analogs (Score:5, Insightful)
The thing is...if you de-criminalized drugs, you'd pretty much cut out "a", in that prices would drop as would profits currently being gained by criminal organizations. Remember prohibition on alcohol in the US? It prompted the rise of the gangs/mafia. Once it was over, well, I certainly don't see many people doing gangland violence over booze these days. Alcohol is just a drug like the others currently banned. It is a toxin that affects the brain.
If we cut out the crime aspect of drugs, we'd save a TON of money in tax dollars each year supporting DEA, and the overcrowded prison system. We could concentrate a small portion of that money to help programs for addicts. Heck, like liquor...why not tax legal pot sales?
Also, don't forget, it wasn't that long ago that any and ALL drugs were perfectly legal in the US. It was not the horrible effects of them that caused them to be banned either....most of them were banned in order to be able to use that to target ethnic groups in the US. Chinese - opiates, Blacks - Cocaine, Mexicans - Pot.
Frankly, I'm still wondering where in the Constitution it gives the Feds. the right to say what drugs are illegal. At least when they tried to do it for alcohol, they did a constitutional amendment. No such thing has been done for "scheduling" of current chemicals (thanks Nixon).
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Re:Analogs (Score:5, Informative)
But IANAD
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Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Insightful)
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Funny)
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Insightful)
Or your employees? Or your signed artists?
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Interesting)
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Insightful)
I doubt it would matter much. There's a lot of evidence that drug abusers will simply switch drugs when their drug of choice becomes unavailable.
It's a real comfort to know that meth, oxy and alcohol abuse will still be available to our children after we save them from the scourge of cocaine.
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Informative)
Really? Link please. According to the second TFA [thestar.com] listed, that has not been the case:
"On the outside, they were using less cocaine. They just stopped. None of them switched to another drug of abuse."
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Re:Possibly useful, but... (Score:5, Informative)
Emphasis mine.
=Smidge=
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Great idea! (Score:5, Funny)
I'd like some anti-freeze to drink afterwards, please.
Alternative to drug testing? (Score:5, Interesting)
Great, so now they'll just be snorting Adderall! (Score:5, Interesting)
The nicotine vaccine is the hard one (Score:5, Interesting)
The anti-smoking vaccine, NicVax [corporate-ir.net], is in phase 2B clinical testing, and appears to work. Sort of: "High antibody responders (top 30%) continued to show statistically significant abstinence at nine months: 9-Month continuous abstinence rate: NicVAX=20% (12/61, p=0.0076) vs. Placebo=6% (6/100)" That's not impressive, yet it's better than most anti-smoking programs.
Nicotine addiction is the toughest one to break. Programs for getting people off cocaine are about 40% successful. Programs for getting people off smoking are about 10-20% successful. Also, addicts tend to "age out" of cocaine and heroin addiction; after age 40, most of them eventually give it up. Not nicotine; people smoke their way to the grave.
One problem with a vaccine approach is that encourage overdoses, to overcome the antibodies. For nicotine, this is less of a problem, because smoking has a limited intake rate. But for cocaine, it's a real issue.
It's encouraging, though, that no side effects of this vaccine have been detected so far vs. the placebo.
The real promise for this vaccine is as a preventative measure. The average age for a new smoker is 13. [state.il.us] Only 10% start after age 18. So if this works, a school inoculation program might be the way to prevent smoking.
Chantix Works Fine (i have firsthand experience!) (Score:5, Informative)
Chantix got me off of ten years of smoking in two months, experientially, not just for while i was on it, but apparently *reversed* the entire psychological and physical process from those years.
Every other time i tried to quit i'd have to avoid bars and lounges so i didn't come in contact with ANY smoke at all. After chantix therapy, I don't have to avoid anything, *i just don't want to smoke*.
I'll leave it to you (i'm already aware) of exactly why chantix has such a powerful effect. Given, i would never never never..
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LD50 (Score:5, Interesting)
A cocaine user decides to get high after being "immunized." He snorts a few lines. Huh. Nothing. So he snorts more and more... at some point I am willing to wager he will suffer cardiac arrest or some other life-threatening problem on his quest towards getting high. If the LD50 is not much changed, this may occur pretty easily.
Also, cocaine has a very rapid onset. I am thinking it wouldn't take much to overwhelm the slower immune system response.
This is an interesting experiment as it is always worthwhile to better understand the immune system, but I think this would be a Real Bad Idea to actually implement. Unless the objective is to kill all cocaine users.
wait, what? (Score:5, Interesting)
Do they really think that a "vaccine" against nicotine is going to help people? If they're already addicted to nicotine for years and years, aren't they going to continue smoking and either make themselves really sick (as their immune systems attempt to fight off the nicotine) or just keep smoking away?
Re:Oblig Orwell (Score:5, Interesting)
On the other hand, a sperm vaccine would be a nice alternative to having your tubes tied. Of course, there's the nightmare scenario where this treatment latches onto a live bit of cholera or whatever and spreads, neutering all humans.
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Re:Oblig Orwell (Score:5, Interesting)
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