meth in Biological News

Prenatal meth exposure linked to abnormal brain development

ST. PAUL, Minn. A first of its kind study examining the effects of methamphetamine use during pregnancy has found the drug appears to cause abnormal brain development in children. The research is published in the April 15, 2009, online issue of Neurology , the medical journal of the American Aca...

New method identifies meth hot spots

CORVALLIS, Ore. A researcher at Oregon State University has used a new method of combining multiple sources of data to identify counties in Oregon with high numbers of methamphetamine-related problems per capita, giving officials a new tool in fighting the illegal drug. The study, presented to...

OHSU lab finds meth receptor that could lead to therapy

A recently discovered signaling system in the brain has just been shown to be turned on by methamphetamine, an Oregon Health & Science University study found. The signaling system could soon become a target for therapies aiming to reverse meth’s adverse health effects as well as reduce the cr...

One hit of crystal meth causes birth defects

A single prenatal dose of methamphetamine ?commonly known as speed ?may be enough to cause long-term neurodevelopmental problems in babies, say University of Toronto researchers. In research published in the August issue of Free Radical Biology and Medicine, U of T pharmacy and pharmacology profe...

Hair samples show babies can be exposed to 'crystal meth' while in the womb

...erase the chemical evidence it holds. Crystal meth boosts alertness and promotes a sense of wellbeing...but 14 of the samples testing positive for crystal meth had been sent for analysis in 2005. The first posi...he authors say that the precise effects of crystal meth on a fetus are not fully known, but the evidence t...

Meth promotes spread of virus in HIV-infected users

...infected users. The investigators found that meth increases expression of a receptor called DC-SIGN,...mmune system. "This finding shows that using meth is doubly dangerous," said Madhavan P.N. Nair, Ph....g it, we may be able to prevent the interaction of meth with its specific receptors, thereby inhibiting th...