Cocaine abuse remains a public health concern for which pharmacotherapies are largely ineffective. Comorbidities between cocaine abuse, depression, and anxiety support the development of novel treatments targeting multiple symptom clusters. Selective negative allosteric modulators (NAMs) targeting the metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGlu 5 ) subtype are currently in clinical trials for the treatment of multiple neuropsychiatric disorders and have shown promise in preclinical models of substance abuse. However, complete blockade or inverse agonist activity by some full mGlu 5 NAM chemotypes demonstrated adverse effects, including psychosis in humans and psychotomimetic-like effects in animals, suggesting a narrow therapeutic window. Development of partial mGlu 5 NAMs, characterized by their submaximal but saturable levels of blockade, may represent a novel approach to broaden the therapeutic window. To understand potential therapeutic vs adverse effects in preclinical behavioral assays, we examined the partial mGlu 5 NAMs, M-5MPEP and Br-5MPEPy, in comparison with the full mGlu 5 NAM MTEP across models of addiction and psychotomimetic-like activity. M-5MPEP, Br-5MPEPy, and MTEP dose-dependently decreased cocaine self-administration and attenuated the discriminative stimulus effects of cocaine. M-5MPEP and Br-5MPEPy also demonstrated antidepressant-and anxiolytic-like activity. Dose-dependent effects of partial and full mGlu 5 NAMs in these assays corresponded with increasing in vivo mGlu 5 occupancy, demonstrating an orderly occupancy-to-efficacy relationship. PCP-induced hyperlocomotion was potentiated by MTEP, but not by M-5MPEP and Br-5MPEPy. Further, MTEP, but not M-5MPEP, potentiated the discriminative-stimulus effects of PCP. The present data suggest that partial mGlu 5 NAM activity is sufficient to produce therapeutic effects similar to full mGlu 5 NAMs, but with a broader therapeutic index.

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), 7-keto DHEA, and several comparison drugs (ethanol, chlordiazepoxide, rauwolscine, and RO15-4513) were administered to male rats responding under a multiple schedule of food and ethanol presentation to determine their selectively for decreasing ethanol-maintained responding. DHEA and 7-keto DHEA significantly decreased both ethanol- and food-maintained responding, compared to control, while also decreasing blood ethanol concentration (BEC). Acute ethanol administration also decreased responding for both food and ethanol; however, ethanol-maintained responding was more potently decreased than food-maintained responding. BEC remained relatively stable after increasing ethanol doses. Among the other drugs tested, RO15-4513 was the most selective for decreasing ethanol-maintained responding compared to food-maintained responding, and it decreased BECs as ethanol-maintained responding decreased. The largest dose of rauwolscine significantly decreased responding for food, while not affecting ethanol-maintained responding compared to control. Low to intermediate doses of rauwolscine produced small, non-significant increases in ethanol-maintained responding and BECs. Chlordiazepoxide produced significant decreases in food-maintained responding and the dose of ethanol presented, but only at the highest dose tested. Although DHEA and 7-keto DHEA did not decrease ethanol-maintained responding as selectively as ethanol or RO15-4513 under the multiple schedule, these neurosteroids may be valuable pharmacological tools in the development of new treatments for alcohol abuse and dependence.

Cocaine is a powerful and highly addictive stimulant that disrupts the normal reward circuitry in the central nervous system (CNS), producing euphoric effects. Cocaine use can lead to acute and life threatening emergencies, and abuse is associated with increased risk for contracting infectious diseases. Though certain types of behavioral therapy have proven effective for treatment of cocaine addiction, relapse remains high, and there are currently no approved medications for the treatment of cocaine abuse. Evidence has continued to accumulate that indicates a critical role for the metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 5 (mGlu5) in the modulation of neural circuitry associated with the addictive properties of cocaine. While the small molecule mGlu5 negative allosteric modulator (NAM) field is relatively advanced, investigation into the potential of small molecule mGlu5 NAMs for the treatment of cocaine addiction remains an area of high interest. Herein we describe the discovery and characterization of a potent and selective compound 29 (VU0463841) with good CNS exposure in rats. The utility of 29 (VU0463841) was demonstrated by its ability to attenuate drug seeking behaviors in relevant rat models of cocaine addiction.

Background To address the hypothesis that GABAA receptor modulation during adolescence may alter the abuse liability of ethanol during adulthood, the effects of adolescent administration of both a positive and negative GABAA receptor modulator on adult alcohol intake and preference were assessed. Methods Three groups of adolescent male rats received 12 injections of lorazepam (3.2 mg/kg), dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA, 56 mg/kg), or vehicle on alternate days starting on postnatal day (PD) 35. After this time, the doses were increased to 5.6 and 100 mg/kg, respectively, for three more injections on alternate days. Subjects had access to 25–30 g of food daily during the period of the first six injections, and 18–20 g thereafter. Food intake of each group was measured 60-min after food presentation, which occurred immediately after drug administration on injection days or at the same time of day on non-injection days. When subjects reached adulthood (PD 88), ethanol preference was determined on two separate occasions, an initial 3-day period and a 12-day period in which increasing concentrations of ethanol were presented. During each preference test, intake of water, saccharin, and an ethanol/saccharin solution was measured after each 23-hour access period. Results During adolescence, lorazepam increased 60-minute food intake, and this effect was enhanced under the more restrictive feeding schedule. DHEA had the opposite effect on injection days, decreasing food intake compared to non-injection days. In adulthood, the lorazepam-treated group preferred the two lowest concentrations of ethanol/saccharin more than saccharin alone compared to vehicle-treated subjects, which showed no preference for any concentration of ethanol/saccharin over saccharin. DHEA-treated subjects showed no preference among the three solutions. Conclusions These data demonstrate that GABAA receptor modulation during adolescence can alter intake and preference for ethanol in adulthood, and highlights the importance of drug history as an important variable in the liability for alcohol abuse.