UK will study the effects of newly prevalent drug xylazine (‘tranq’)
By Elizabeth Chapin
University of Kentucky
The combination of xylazine and fentanyl caused a 1,127% increase in xylazine-positive overdose deaths in the South in 2020-21, and other problematic health effects, including tissue death from poor circulation.
Xylazine is posing other new challenges to the fight against opioids, since it decreases the usefulness of naloxone (branded as Narcan), the drug that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose.
Gipson-Reichardt and Hinds will study the brain circuits that are changed when xylazine and fentanyl are used together and see if these changes are responsible for making naloxone less effective. They have already identified unexpected pathways controlled by the combination that may reduce the actions of naloxone. In their work, they will determine if targeting these pathways could be therapeutic.
“By studying these processes in detail, we hope to better understand the ways xylazine and fentanyl interact in the brain and how they affect behavior,” said Gipson-Reichardt. “This knowledge could lead us to new strategies for treating people who are struggling with the combined use of these substances and help make naloxone more effective in saving lives.”