2-paragraph summary at a 6th grade reading level:

Kratom is a plant that has become popular in the United States. Some people use kratom to help with pain or to reduce their need for opioid drugs. Recent studies have shown that kratom can also help reduce alcohol use in mice. However, the main active ingredient in kratom, called 7- hydroxymitragynine, can also cause some negative side effects, like addiction and hyperactivity.

The researchers in this study wanted to find new kratom-based drugs that could help reduce alcohol use without causing as many side effects. They tested several new kratom-derived drugs in mice and found that one called 7-hydroxyspeciogynine was effective at reducing alcohol use without causing addiction or hyperactivity. This suggests that 7-hydroxyspeciogynine could be a promising new treatment option for people who want to reduce their alcohol use.

This study was done in a lab, using mice as the subjects. No human studies were reported.

Key takeaways:

• Kratom can help reduce alcohol use in mice, but the main active ingredient also has
  negative side effects.
• The researchers tested new kratom-derived drugs and found 7-hydroxyspeciogynine was
  effective at reducing alcohol use without causing addiction or hyperactivity in mice.
• 7-hydroxyspeciogynine shows promise as a potential new treatment option for alcohol use
  disorder

For further reading:

The article can be found online at https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2021.764885/full

Full Citation:

Gutridge, A. M., Chakraborty, S., Varga, B. R., Rhoda, E. S., French, A. R., Blaine, A. T., Royer, Q. H., Cui, H., Yuan, J., Cassell, R. J., Szab, M., Majumdar, S., & van Rijn, R. M. (2021). Evaluation of Kratom Opioid Derivatives as Potential Treatment Option for Alcohol Use Disorder. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 12, 764885. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2021.764885/full