A new study has found that bile acids could be key to preventing cocaine addiction, the Daily Mail reported.
The liver to help with fat absorption releases the substance. Researchers found it can reduce the high people addicted to the drug get.
"Giving lab mice surgery to ramp up their lowered the amount of dopamine they produced in response to cocaine," the report revealed.
"These findings redefine the physiological significance of bile acid signalling," study co-author Dr Aurelio Galli, a biologist at the University of Alabama, told the Daily Mail. Adding, "They highlight the importance of determining whether bile acid analogues represent a viable pharmacological treatment for cocaine abuse."
Currently, there are no medications to treat the deadly addiction. However, the new findings offer new hope for people struggling to fight the drug.
"This study also contributes to a greater understanding of how gut-based signalling influences higher order central functions such as reward," Dr Galli told the Daily Mail.
