Opioid abuse has increased in the last decade, primarily as a result of increased access to
prescription opioids. Physicians are also increasingly administering opioid analgesics for …

With a current prevalence of approximately 20%, smoking continues to impact negatively
upon health. Tobacco or nicotine use influences the endocrine system, with important clinical …

Obesity is an increasingly prevalent disease regulated by genetic and environmental factors.
Emerging studies indicate that immune cells, including monocytes, granulocytes and …

Buprenorphine, an opioid with mixed agonist-antagonist activity at classical opioid receptors,
has been approved recently for the treatment of opioid dependency. Buprenorphine is also …

Buprenorphine is a mixed opioid receptor agonist-antagonist used clinically for maintenance
therapy in opiate addicts and pain management. Dose-response curves for buprenorphine-…

Chronic tobacco use leads to nicotine addiction that is characterized by exaggerated urges
to use the drug despite the accompanying negative health and socioeconomic burdens. …

Excess tissue glucocorticoid action may contribute to the hyperglycemia and insulin resistance
associated with type 2 diabetes, but the associated mechanisms are poorly understood. …

Stress is known to elicit pain relief, a phenomenon referred to as stress-induced analgesia.
Based on stress parameters, opioid and non-opioid intrinsic pain inhibitory systems can be …

Nicotine induces weight loss in both humans and rodents consuming a regular diet; however,
the effect of nicotine on body weight and fat composition in rodents consuming a highfat …

Rationale: Orphanin FQ (OFQ; also known as nociceptin), the endogenous ligand of the
opioid receptor-like receptor, injected intracerebroventricularly (icv) decreases basal motor …