Mission

Organization

Resources

Activities

Funding Opportunities

Contact Us



MCBDA Home

Mission of the Center

The mission of the Basic Research Center on Molecular and Cell Biology of Drug Addiction (MCBDA) is to develop treatments for drug addiction by understanding the mechanisms of drugs' actions via basic research.

Objectives

1) To foster interdisciplinary approaches and collaborations among investigators to address the problems of drug addiction.

2) To serve as an “activity center” to coordinate and to promote all academic and scholarly activities on drug addiction at University of Minnesota.

3) To serve as a national resource for drug addiction research by providing reagents, probes or genetically altered mice developed by Center investigators.

4) To serve as the training center for young scientists interested in the problems of drug addiction research.

Background

Drug addiction is a major health and social problem in USA. In the past, drug addicts were considered to be "bad" or “weak” persons unable to control their behaviors and gratifications. However, with the vast information available from decades of research, it is accepted that drug addiction is a chronic recurring neural disease that involves compulsory drug seeking and use. It is a disease with great public health implications because drug addicts have been shown to be a major vector for the transmission of infectious diseases such as HIV, hepatitis and tuberculosis, among others. Thus, there is an urgency to develop treatment of drug addiction by understanding the basis for such disease.

The Basic Research Center on Molecular and Cell Biology of Drug Addiction was established in 1998 to serve as the focus for the divergent drug addiction research programs at the University of Minnesota, promote synergistic collaborations among investigators, and bring the training of scientists in drug addiction research into focus. The Center was formed, under the direction of Dr. Horace H. Loh, with 8 investigators from 4 separate basic science departments within the Medical School, i.e., Department of Pharmacology, Department of Neuroscience, Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, and Department of Surgery. The Center was created by combining two existing research program projects on drug addiction. The faculty was selected based on their commitments to work together, on research focused on the molecular and cell biology aspects of drug addiction.

A 5-year proposal for the Center was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in October 1998. A five-year renewal received in 2003 extended that funding through 2008.

We intend to build upon past accomplishments to further drug addiction research at the University of Minnesota. We remain committed to the Center’s goal to attract young investigators to the field through the seed grant program, Center faculty’s involvement with NIDA training programs, and mentoring. In addition Dr. Kevin Wickman joined the Center as a principal investigator in 2003. We feel our Center will continue to grow into a national resource and training center for future investigators in drug addiction research.