An alcohol substitute developed from chemicals similar to those found in Valium, specifically benzodiazepines like diazepam, can give a buzz without any of the negative effects, such as hangovers and addiction. Professor David Nutt from the Imperial College in London has expressed his hopes of finding a way for people to drink without risk of addiction, intoxication or increased aggression. He believes that it would improve public health because a person would only be mildly drunk no matter how much "alcohol" he had consumed. Unlike actual alcohol, the drug derivative does not affect other parts of the brain related to addiction and mood swings. Researchers also have developed a sobering antidote pill that turns off the effect of this pseudo-alcohol, an effect that could decrease drunk driving. Nutt hopes the alcohol substitute will undergo clinical trials and licensing soon.
-compiled by Surabhi Bhatt
Read More
U.Va. Health sees a spike in COVID-19 cases
By Emily Horn | September 4, 2023U.Va. Health ended their vaccination requirements in August, and masks were made optional in most hospital areas in early April.
U.Va. Cancer Center harnesses $12 million grant to support opportunities for undergraduates, ongoing research and new center
By Ellen Wu | January 12, 2023The grant provides an opportunity to establish the Center for Systems Analysis of Stress-Adapted Cancer Organelles, which seeks to find the cause of cancer in individual organelles.
U.Va. Health's rural neurology clinics receive a $500,000 grant to fund research and patient care
By Shrinidhi Kittur | January 12, 2023Established in the rural towns of Tazewell, Abingdon and Wise, the clinics have been providing patient care to otherwise underserved populations for decades.
