The Molecular Basis of Drug Addiction

Shafiqur Rahman, Ph.D. is Professor of Pharmacology in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at South Dakota State University (SDSU) in Brookings, USA. He received his Ph.D. in Neuropharmacology from the Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada. Dr. Rahman completed his post-doctoral fellowship in the Department of Psychiatry from Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis in USA. Prior to joining SDSU, he worked as research scientist and faculty at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, USA and the University of Toronto, Canada. Dr. Rahman's research focus is drug discovery in neuropharmacology, i.e. the development of novel therapeutic candidates for the treatment of drug addiction and neuropsychiatric disorders. His research and scholarship has resulted in over 125 publications and 11 edited books/book chapters. Dr. Rahman served as editor, editorial board member and reviewer for numerous Scientific Journals and review panels related to drug addiction, neuropharmacology, and drug discovery research. Dr. Rahman is also a member of several professional societies or organizations, including Society for Neuroscience, American Society for Experimental Neurotherapeutics, and American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.

• 1. Molecular Mechanism: ERK Signaling, Drug Addiction, and Behavioral EffectsWei-Lun Sun, Pamela M. Quizon, Jacqueline F. McGinty and Jun Zhu2. Ethanol-Associated Changes in Glutamate Reward Neurocircuitry: A Mini-Review of Clinical and Preclinical Genetic FindingsRichard L. Bell, Sheketha R. Hauser, Jeanette McClintick, Shafiqur Rahman, Howard J. Edenberg, Karen K. Szumlinski and William J. McBride3. S-Glutathionylation and Redox Protein Signaling in Drug AddictionJacqueline S. Womersley and Joachim D. Uys4. Molecular Mechanisms of Cannabis Signaling in the BrainPatrick J. Ronan, Narin Wongngamnit and Thomas P. Beresford5. The Nociceptin Receptor as an Emerging Molecular Target for Cocaine AddictionKabirullah Lutfy and Nurulain T. Zaveri6. Recent Advances in Nicotinic Receptor Signaling in Alcohol Abuse and AlcoholismShafiqur Rahman, Eric A. Engelman and Richard L. Bell7. Molecular Changes in Opioid Addiction: The Role of Adenylyl Cyclase and cAMP/PKA SystemPatrick Chan and Kabirullah Lutfy8. Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model to Study the Molecular and Genetic Mechanisms of Drug AddictionEric A. Engleman, Simon N. Katner and Bethany S. Neal-Beliveau