The rate of codependency for alcohol and nicotine is extremely high. Numerous studies have indicated that there is a common genetic association for alcoholism and nicotine dependency. The current experiments examined whether selective breeding for high alcohol preference in rats may be associated with increased sensitivity of the posterior ventral tegmental area (pVTA) to the reinforcing proper...

The US Public Health Service (PHS) Clinical Practice Guideline Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence, published in June 2000, is a clinician-targeted resource that encourages physicians to apply evidence-based interventions when treating tobacco-dependent patients. Issued by the PHS Surgeon General, the guideline recommends a new standard of care in treating tobacco dependency, the chief cause of...

BACKGROUND Smoking consumption alters cardiac autonomic function. OBJECTIVE Assess the influence of the intensity of smoking and the nicotine dependence degree in cardiac autonomic modulation evaluated through index of heart rate variability (HRV). METHODS 83 smokers, of both genders, between 50 and 70 years of age and with normal lung function were divided according to the intensity of smo...

Effects of hirsutine, an alkaloid that produces a potent ganglion blocking effect, were investigated using rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cells. Hirsutine (1 to 10 microM) suppressed dopamine-release evoked by 100 microM nicotine. In voltage-clamped cells, hirsutine (1 to 10 microM) inhibited the inward current activated by 100 microM nicotine. Hirsutine was equipotent to hexamethonium in blocking t...

PURPOSE To investigate the work associated stress and nicotine dependence among law enforcement personnel in Mangalore, India. MATERIALS AND METHODS A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was conducted among law enforcement personnel in Mangalore, India. Demographic details, stress factors experienced at work and nicotine dependency were the variables studied. The extent of stress factors exp...

BACKGROUND The complex mechanism of nicotine dependency makes it challenging to evaluate dependence or progress towards dependence. The aim of this study was to estimate nicotine dependence levels and identify determinants of dependence among Chinese rural-urban migrants. METHODS Multi-stage systematic sampling was used to select 4,198 rural-urban migrants aged 18 years or older from three me...

BACKGROUND Determination of nicotine metabolism/pharmacokinetics provides a useful tool for estimating uptake of nicotine and tobacco-related toxicants, for understanding the pharmacologic effects of nicotine and nicotine addiction, and for optimizing nicotine dependency treatment. METHODS We developed a sensitive method for analysis of nicotine and five major nicotine metabolites, including ...