Modified tetracycline for treatment of alcohol use disorder, pain and other disorders involving potential inflammatory processes

A method of evaluating a candidate drug believed to be useful in treating a Substance Use Disorder (SUD) or pain, the method comprising:

• a) measuring the SUD or pain from a set of patients;
• b) administering a candidate drug to a first subset of the patients, and a placebo to a second subset of the patients, wherein the candidate drug is a C6′ modified tetracycline that has the formula:
• R1 is methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, acetyl, R2 is H or acetyl, R3 is H or acetyl, R4 is H or acetyl, and R5 is H or acetyl;
• c) repeating step a) after the administration of the candidate drug or the placebo;
• and
• d) determining if the candidate drug reduces the SUD or pain that is statistically significant as compared to any reduction occurring in the second subset of patients, wherein a statistically significant reduction indicates that the candidate drug is useful in treating SUD or pain.

A method of treating a Substance Use Disorder (SUD), or pain comprising:

• identifying a subject in need of treatment for the SUD or pain;
• and
• providing the subject with an effective amount of a modified tetracycline or derivative thereof to ameliorate the SUD or pain, and wherein the modified tetracycline or derivative thereof has reduced binding to a microbial ribosome and has the formula:
• R1 is methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, acetyl, R2 is OH or acetyl, R3 is H or acetyl, R4 is H or acetyl, and R5 is H or acetyl, in a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.