A focus is on the mechanisms of cocaine dependence with a view towards developing novel medications and treatments. Over the past ten years, Dr. Kuhar's group has shown that the dopamine transporter is a key cocaine receptor involved in the addicting properties of cocaine. Accordingly, a major effort has been on the biochemical and molecular characterization of the dopamine transporter. Dr. Kuhar and collaborators were among the first to clone the dopamine transporter from the rat brain. Antibodies to specific peptide segments of the predicted protein were developed and detailed immunohistochemical studies at both the light and electron microscopic level were carried out.
Current efforts focus on turnover and phosphorylation of the transporter.
Another area of interest has been medications for cocaine abusers. There are no current medications for cocaine abusers and development of such medications is a national priority. Dr. Kuhar and his collaborator, Dr. Ivy Carroll at the Research Triangle Institute, have produced and tested several hundred compounds, many of which are being evaluated as medications. Dr. Kuhar's research team has also been a leader in the development of imaging agents for neurotransmitter transporters. His group showed that several phenyltropane compounds are especially useful as in vivo transporter binding ligands.