The Vaccine that Could Halt the Opioid Epidemic

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute and Virginia Commonwealth University recently published a study that could be game-changing in the treatment of opioid-dependent patients. Working with rhesus macaque monkeys, researchers developed a vaccine that was effective in blocking the high of heroin, which, they believe, could prevent drug use relapse when administered to recovering addicts. Why were monkeys part of the study?Rhesus monkeys are arguably the most similar to humans, said the study’s first author Paul Bremer. “Because the immunological, pharmacological and behavioral effects of the vaccine—in relation to heroin use—have now been established in monkeys, these effects would likely be similar in humans with the implication that the vaccine could be effective in mitigating heroin abuse.”