Cocaine and amphetamine users appear to develop an abnormal protein in their brains that could play a role in addiction, UPI reported Sept. 6.

Researchers at the Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in North Chicago, Ill., found that use of these drugs alters a protein that controls how RNA is copied -- an anomaly that could cause structural changes in tissues, diseases, and behavior changes.

The study appears in the online journal PLoS One.