Cannabidiol Attenuates Heroin Seeking in Male Rats Associated With Normalization of Discrete Neurobiological Signatures Within the Nucleus Accumbens With Subregional Specificity.

Summary: Opioid addiction is a tough cycle to break. People often quit but then start using again when something reminds them of the drug. Scientists are looking at CBD, a part of the cannabis plant that doesn't make you high, to see if it can help stop these relapses. In a new study using rats, researchers found that CBD helped stop the rats from seeking out heroin. They also looked at the rats' brains to find out why. Heroin changes how certain genes work in a part of the brain linked to rewards. CBD helped fix these changes, especially genes related to brain healing and the immune system. This gives hope that CBD could be a promising treatment to help people stay away from heroin.