Weight loss medication semaglutide reduces cocaine seeking behavior in animal study

Scientists have found that the diabetes/weight loss drug Semaglutide, sold commercially under brand names like Ozempic and Wegovy, significantly reduces cocaine-seeking behaviour in rats. This work needs to be confirmed in humans, but it suggests that Semaglutide is a candidate to be developed as a treatment for cocaine dependency; at the moment there is no effective pharmacological treatment for cocaine dependency. The work is published in the September edition of the peer-reviewed journal European Neuropsychopharmacology.

Cocaine is the second most popular illegal drug used in Europe. The European Drug Agency reports that around 2.7 million young adults (between the age of 15-34) use cocaine regularly, representing around 2.5% of the population in that age group. Cocaine use in the UK is the second highest in the world, with around 2.7% of adults using the drug (see notes). There is, to date, no effective pharmacological treatment for problematic cocaine use.

Scientists from the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and the University of Pennsylvania, led by Professor Elisabet Jerlhag (University of Gothenburg), gave male rats access to directly-injected cocaine, which they could dispense by pressing a lever in the cage. Then an experimental group of 10 of these animals were treated with semaglutide before being given access to the cocaine dispenser.

Elisabet Jerlhag said:

“We found that in comparison to the control animals, self-administration of cocaine use dropped by 26% in those animals which had been given semaglutide. Previous results, both from our group and from other groups, have found that semaglutide can reduce alcohol consumption and craving in both humans and animals, and this work on cocaine seems to reflect these previous findings on alcohol use. This is the first trial showing Semaglutide’s potential as a drug for cocaine dependence.

Importantly, we also found that after a period of abstinence, there was a 62% drop in cocaine seeking in those animals which had taken semaglutide and the motivation (work undertaken to attain the drug) was lowered by 52%.

This is animal work, so at the moment, we can’t say that we have anywhere near a viable treatment for human cocaine dependency. We need a bigger study to confirm these results, and then we need to see if the findings also apply to humans. However, these results are very promising, underlining the need for human studies, especially since there are no existing pharmacological treatments for cocaine dependency”.

Semaglutide belongs to a class of drugs called GLP-1 inhibitors. These drugs (along with the similar drug Mounjaro) have revolutionised the treatment of excess weight, and are now showing promise in the treatment of mental health problems.

Commenting, Professor Christian Hendershot (of the Institute for Addiction at the Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles) said:

“This is a carefully conducted study that provides additional evidence that GLP-1 receptor agonists can reduce cocaine reinforcement. These findings have clinical implications given the challenges identifying medications for stimulant use disorder, and the increasing clinical use of semaglutide in many areas of the world. These findings should encourage clinical trials of GLP-1 receptor agonists for stimulant use disorder”.

Professor Hendershot was not involved in this research; this is an independent comment. Professor Hendershot was lead researcher on the first randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial of semaglutide’s effects on alcohol craving in adults.