Pubdate: Wed, 25 Aug 1999 Source: Reuters Copyright: 1999 Reuters Limited. COCAINE ``VACCINE'' BLUNTS CRAVING IN ADDICTED ANIMALS NEW YORK, - In laboratory animals, a vaccine has been used successfully to fight cocaine addiction, according to a study presented this week at the American Chemical Society's annual meeting in New Orleans. At the meeting, Dr. Kim D. Janda of The Scripps Research Institute in La Jolla, California, described how the technique ''effectively blunts cocaine's effect in rats.'' Janda explained that the cocaine molecule is too small to stimulate an immune response. His team overcame the problem by attaching a derivative of cocaine to a larger protein -- and found that the result does stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies. The technique can be used to ``train'' the immune system to produce the antibodies. Over several weeks, amounts of these antibodies build up in the body. The antibodies work by attaching themselves to cocaine molecules in the blood, stopping them from reaching receptors in the brain, thus blocking their effects. The investigators have also developed monoclonal antibodies that degrade cocaine and effectively rid the body of its breakdown products. This technique ``could be used in the emergency room for overdoses,'' Janda explained. The Scripps investigator added that his team is hoping to begin clinical trials of the two types of ''immuno-pharmacotherapy'' techniques against cocaine by the winter of 2000. - --- MAP posted-by: Derek Rea