Neuropharmacology of Alcohol Use Disorders

Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) remains a major global public health and socioeconomic challenge. Available pharmacotherapeutic agents show limited efficacy in reducing compulsive intake, withdrawal-related distress, and relapse. While classical treatments target GABAergic, glutamatergic, and opioid signaling, a growing body of work points to a broader network of neuropeptide, stress, and neuroimmune pathways shaping the course of addiction.Neuropeptides such as orphanin FQ/nociceptin, PACAP, dynorphin, orexins, ghrelin, NPY, and CRF, along with peptides acting centrally from the periphery, have shown promise in altering alcohol self-administration, withdrawal signs, and craving. Several also modulate stress-induced reinstatement and negative affective states like anxiety, depression, and anhedonia during abstinence, mechanisms central to why AUD is so often refractory to treatment.This Research Topic aims to identify and elucidate pharmacological targets in AUD across the intake, withdrawal, and preoccupation phases of addiction, drawing on preclinical and clinical evidence alike. We welcome work spanning classical and emerging targets, from receptor-level mechanisms to systemic neuroimmune and neuroendocrine interactions.We welcome manuscripts addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:- Preclinical or clinical studies showing alterations in alcohol self-administration, preference, and seeking behavior by neuropeptides, neuromodulators, or their receptor agonists/antagonists.- The role of neuropeptides and stress pathways in modulating negative affective states (anxiety, depression, anhedonia) during alcohol withdrawal and abstinence.- Changes in neuropeptide, neurotransmitter, or receptor levels across brain regions following alcohol self-administration or withdrawal.- Cue- or stress-mediated craving and reinstatement, and the neuropeptide/receptor systems that drive it, in animal models and human populations.- The neuroimmune-addiction interface, including cytokine signaling and neuroinflammatory pathways in AUD pathology.- Comparative analyses of existing therapeutic agents versus emerging pharmacological targets to improve treatment efficacy and safety. Topic editors: Kabirullah Lutfy, Marcelo F. Lopez, Vijayapandi Pandy, Terril Verplaetse Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/84337/neuropharmacology-of-alcohol-use-disorders