Insights into the mechanisms underlying opioid use disorder and potential treatment strategies.

Abstract

Opioid use disorder is a worldwide societal problem and public health burden. Strategies for treating opioid use disorder can be divided those that target the opioid receptor system and those that target non-opioid receptor systems, including the dopamine and glutamate receptor systems. Currently, the clinical drugs used to treat anti-opioid use disorder include the opioid receptor agonists methadone and buprenorphine, which are limited by abuse liability, and the opioid receptor antagonist naltrexone, which is limited by poor compliance. Therefore, the development of effective medications with lower abuse liability and better potential for compliance is urgently needed. Based on recent advances in the understanding of the neurobiological mechanisms underlying opioid use disorder, potential treatment strategies and targets have emerged. This review focuses on the progress made in identifying potential targets and developing medications to treat opioid use disorder, including progress made by our laboratory, and provides insights for future medication development.