J E Rose

..These results highlight the potent interaction between ethanol and nicotinic systems, and suggest that ethanol can potentiate the rewarding effects of nicotine as well as offset some of the effects of a nicotinic antagonist...

..The effects of acute nicotine administration and smoking on brain function were investigated in two studies, with the primary goal of identifying neural systems that mediate these effects...

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..Thus, addressing smokers' needs for both for the sensorimotor aspects of smoking as well as for the direct CNS effects of nicotine may be critical in enhancing smoking cessation treatment outcome...

..These results have significant implications for theories of addiction to nicotine as well as other drugs such as cocaine that may be subject to binding by lung tissue...

..Animal models allow for analysis of anatomical and physiological mechanisms underlying nicotine self-administration; human studies validate the relevance to tobacco dependence and smoking cessation treatment...

..Moreover, the orthostatic decrease in blood pressure caused by mecamylamine was offset by nicotine. Mecamylamine before smoking cessation may be an effective adjunct to nicotine patch therapy...

..These data support the hypothesis that replacement of the sensory cues of smoking with "airway sensory replacement" may be useful for smoking cessation...

..The role of endogenous opiate systems in cigarette smoking remains unclear. In laboratory animals, opiate antagonists block many of the effects of nicotine, but in humans they do not consistently alter smoking behavior...

..Descending projections from the telencephalon through the habenula to brainstem nuclei using nicotinic receptors appear to be a key pathway for memory processing...

..The implications of these findings for smoking cessation treatment and for future research are discussed...

..This study shows that, in addition to reducing attentional impairment, nicotine administered via transdermal patches can improve attentiveness in normal adult non-smokers...

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..Individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) smoke at higher rates than the general population; however, little is known about the mechanisms underlying this comorbidity...

..These findings provide further evidence that reactivity to conditioned drug cues is multiply determined and suggest that smoking cessation treatments designed to reduce cue reactivity focus on each of these variables...

..Clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed...

..Tobacco addiction may thus be seen as a complex neuropsychopharmacological disorder; further progress in smoking cessation treatment may require that we address the multiple molecular and brain components of this addiction...

..A dopamine receptor 4 variable number tandem repeat (DRD4 VNTR) polymorphism has been related to reactivity to smoking cues among smokers, but the effect of this genetic variation on brain responses to smoking cues has not been evaluated...

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..5-HT mechanisms play critical roles in the maintenance of nicotine self-administration. Better understanding of those roles may help lead to new 5-HT-based treatments for tobacco addiction...

..In addition to unimodal therapies, treatment combinations will be discussed that might more effectively block cigarette reward and thereby further enhance smoking abstinence...

..Exposure to smoking-related cues can trigger relapse in smokers attempting to maintain abstinence...

..Sazetidine-A [6-(5(((S)-azetidine-2-yl)methoxy)pyridine-3-yl)hex-5-yn-1-ol] is a novel compound that potently and selectively desensitizes alpha4beta2 nicotinic receptors with only modest receptor activation...

..These assessments, taken together, can help match most smokers with optimal NRT doses and help rapidly identify some who may be better treated using other methods...

..Nicotine and non-nicotine components of cigarette smoke contribute to its reinforcing effects; however, the specific role of each component in maintaining behavior has not yet been elucidated...

..For these reasons, smokers' dependence on cigarette smoking, or the resistance of NDS to becoming dependent, cannot be explained solely by a faster brain nicotine accumulation...

..Further exploration is warranted of the use of silver-based preparations as a short-term adjunct to smoking cessation treatment...

..Saz-A, which is a selective alpha4beta2-desensitizing agent and partial agonist, effectively reduces nicotine self-administration. This type of treatment holds promise for a new therapy to aid smoking cessation...

..We hypothesized that smoking in the presence of continuous levels of nicotine would attenuate the reinforcing effects of cigarette smoking and lead to a decline in dependence on inhaled nicotine, thus facilitating cessation...

..Further trials of this promising nicotine inhalation technology are warranted to assess its safety and efficacy in smoking cessation treatment or harm reduction approaches...

..The results also highlight the likely role of thalamic gating processes as well as striatal reward and corticolimbic regulatory pathways in the maintenance of cigarette addiction...

..Although the great majority of tobacco addiction begins during adolescence, little is known about differential nicotine effects in adolescents versus adults...

..v. nicotine and denicotinized smoke approximated the effects of the usual brand. The results of this study underscore the importance of both sensorimotor aspects of smoking and the pharmacologic effects of nicotine in tobacco dependence...

..Thus, animal models of nicotine dependence may need to be employed in conjunction with self-administration procedures in order to duplicate the effects of mecamylamine observed in studies of human smokers...

..The results of this preliminary study suggest that controlled deep breathing may be useful for relieving symptoms of smoking withdrawal...

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..A similar trend was observed for negative affect. These results suggest that mecamylamine can moderate smoking cue-induced emotional responses in smokers...

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..These results are consistent with previous ambulatory findings regarding mood in smokers but also underscore that, in certain populations, mood and symptom variables may be significantly associated with ad lib smoking...

..These include constituents that provide reinforcing sensory stimulation, components that minimize excessive irritation from inhaled nicotine and other pharmacologically active compounds in cigarette smoke...

..These molecules may be relevant to tobacco addiction and affective symptoms...

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..Despite established links between nicotine dependence and depression, little research has examined the effects of nicotine on depression symptoms...

..Further research to clarify appropriate dosages and optimal beverages for mixture, and controlled trials to assess safety and efficacy, appear in order...

..Nicotinic antagonistic treatment may be a useful new approach to treat cocaine addiction...

..These results suggest that smoking abstinence significantly increases errors of response inhibition and that the magnitude of this increase is related to trait impulsivity and nicotine intake variables...

..Results suggest that oxidative stress and free-radical damage diminish soon after smoking cessation. Thus, some significant health benefits may appear rapidly when people quit smoking...

..However, associations between brain structure and smoking cessation treatment outcomes have not been reported...

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..CONCLUSIONS: Mecamylamine seems to modify both the pharmacokinetic profile of alcohol and the rewarding effects of alcohol in healthy volunteers...

..All measures demonstrated good test-retest reliability. Objective measures of smoking were consistently intercorrelated and should be the preferred outcome measures in studies testing strategies to reduce smoking...

..Smoking remains a major public health problem. Twin studies indicate that the ability to quit smoking is substantially heritable, with genetics that overlap modestly with the genetics of vulnerability to dependence on addictive substances...

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..4% vs. 21.9%). No serious adverse events were attributable to the investigational product. Quest plus NRT offers promise as a new smoking cessation treatment...

..In many cases, such discrepancies could be attributed to the complex variables comprising species-specific in vivo responses to acute or chronic nicotine exposure...