At the Center for Substance Abuse Research (CSAR), our mission is to unravel the complex biological mechanisms of addiction and related disorders.  

Our goal is to identify novel therapeutic targets and strategies that will improve prevention and treatment, alleviate human suffering and mitigate the medical and societal consequences of substance abuse.  

By gaining deeper insights into the molecular, genetic and neural processes that govern addiction, we aim to develop innovative therapies not only for substance use disorders but also for pain, inflammation, analgesia and associated co-morbidities. 

Our multidisciplinary research team consists of faculty from the School of Medicine, the School of Pharmacy and the College of Liberal Arts. They collaborate to address critical questions from many perspectives. 

CSAR research encompasses a wide range of drug classes, including opioids (e.g., heroin, morphine, oxycodone, buprenorphine), cannabinoids (e.g., D9-tetrahydrocannabinol [THC], cannabidiol, synthetic cannabinoids), and psychostimulants (e.g., cocaine, amphetamines, MDMA, synthetic cathinones [bath salts]). 

Our key areas of focus include: 

• Identifying and studying neural circuits and mediators that control drug-seeking behaviors. 
• Discovering therapeutic targets and novel agents to help people avoid relapsing to drug-seeking behaviors. 
• Molecular and genetic mechanisms involved in substance use and addiction.  
• Behavioral and physiological consequences of exposure to misused drugs.  
• Discovering novel opioid-sparing therapies to relieve pain. 
• Interrelationships between classical neurotransmitter systems and immune mediators in the brain, particularly as related to addiction, pain and analgesia. 
• Interrelationships between stress and drug-seeking behaviors. 

Supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)/National Institutes of Health (NIH) and a P30 Core Center of Excellence grant, CSAR is committed to advancing the field of addiction research. Our NIDA T32 training grant further supports the development of the next generation of scientists, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, equipping them with the expertise to tackle the pressing challenges of addiction.