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Blog by Legislature 2006: Steve Terrell

February 14, 2006

The Drug Policy Alliance, which has pushed the medical marijuana bill, is hoping for a long-shot chance to revive the bill, which was killed by the House Ag Committee on Saturday.

Of course the House might get hung up debating the quail season memorial ...

Here's an e-mail the group sent out this morning:

Last Chance for Medical Marijuana in New Mexico

Don't Let Four People Decide

Our campaign to protect seriously ill people who benefit from medical marijuana is in jeopardy. On Saturday, the House Agriculture Committee voted to table the bill 4-3. Rep. Richard Cheney, R-Farmington, made the motion to table, with Reps. Joseph Stell, D-Carlsbad, Sandra Townsend, R-Aztec, and Don Tripp, R-Socorro voting in support of the motion. Four representatives who are not representing the majority of NM voters' opinions should not make the final decision. This lifesaving legislation deserves an up-or-down vote on the floor.

Please act now to help pass medical marijuana in New Mexico

We only have a few procedural options to move the bill from the table. All of these options need the support of the majority of the House. And that's where we need your help. We need to flood the representatives with emails asking that they do the right thing. The sick and dying in New Mexico deserve a fair debate on the House floor, not to be tabled in a procedural move.

Your voice will make a difference. Demand compassion in New Mexico for our most vulnerable. Don't delay, send a letter before Wednesday, Feb. 15 before noon, and invite your friends to join you. It's our last chance for this year.

Thank you for your work to demostrate that compassion is a value of the people of New Mexico. Don't forget: the deadline for letters is Wed, Feb. 15, NOON.

Sincerely,

Reena Szczepanski Director, Drug Policy Alliance New Mexico

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February 14, 2006

An international research team led by the University of Saskatchewan has discovered a signaling pathway in the brain involved in drug addiction, together with a method for blocking its action, that may point to a single treatment strategy for most addictions. Their findings appear in the March issue of the prestigious journal Nature Medicine.

The team, led by Xia Zhang, associate professor in the U of S department of psychiatry, found that a naturally occurring enzyme known as PTEN acts on the part of the brain where many drugs of abuse exert their rewarding effects - the ventral tegmental area (VTA).

"Our results suggest a potential universal strategy for treating drug addiction," Zhang says. "Most drugs of abuse act on the neurons in this area."

He cautions that much work remains to be done before a treatment based on the discovery could be developed to help drug addicts. This includes several years of further testing, including animal and, finally, human trials.

"We have our peptide, but there's a long way to go before a clinical application," he says.

"Dr. Zhang's research is important to our understanding of drug addiction. His work epitomizes how health research holds the key to improved health and quality of life for Canadians and people throughout the world," said Dr. Rimi Quirion, Scientific Director of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Institute of Neurosciences, Mental Health and Addiction.

Zhang, who worked with colleagues at the U of S, University of Toronto, and Vanderbilt University in Tennessee on the project, explains that VTA brain cells are sensitive to serotonin, a hormone associated with learning, sleep and mood. The team discovered that PTEN acts on these serotonin receptors, increasing brain cell activity. This is the same "reward" process sparked by drugs of abuse.

Armed with this knowledge, the team designed a molecule called a peptide, tailored to fit the serotonin receptors and block PTEN. When rats were treated with this PTEN-blocker, it shut down the drug reward process - including the process that induces craving and withdrawal.

The study, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, looked at nicotine and THC (the active ingredient in marijuana). However, Zhang says the results could also hold true for other drugs such as cocaine, heroin, and even methamphetamine.

Zhang's U of S research team is part of the Neural Systems and Plasticity Research Group, one of several interdisciplinary health sciences research groups at the University.

The group, dedicated to the study of brain systems and how they change with experience, draws expertise from numerous departments across six colleges on campus.

http://www.cihr-irsc.gc.ca/

mbc

The Pentagon’s War on the Internet: http://www.altpr.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=599&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0

Bush Tags Bloggers As Terrorists: http://prisonplanet.com/articles/february2006/140206bloggers.htm

Outsmart the Bad Guys: http://georgewashington.blogspot.com/2006/02/outsmart-bad-guys.html

THE WAY OUT...

Kevin Barrett: Bin Laden tapes are as phony as Sept. 11's connection to Islam: http://www.madison.com/tct/opinion/column/index.php?ntid=72574&ntpid=1

Question 9/11; A Call To Activism: http://www.communitycurrency.org/jl.html