scholarly journals Update on pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation

2021 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 216-224
Author(s):  
Hye Sook Choi ◽  
Jae Yeol Kim
Keyword(s):  
Smoking Cessation ◽  
Cigarette Smoking ◽  
Adverse Events ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
First Line ◽  
Effective Agent ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
Increased Risk

Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death, and smoking cessation is the only way to reduce the risk of developing and dying from smoking-related diseases. The binding of nicotine to <i>α</i>4<i>β</i>2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the ventral tegmental area causes transmission of signals to nuclear accumbens, where neurotransmitters, such as dopamine, are released. Euphoric feelings and satisfaction acquired due to the released neurotransmitters make smokers reach for a cigarette once again after a short while, thereby completing a repeating cycle of addiction. Medications for smoking cessation, such as nicotine replacement therapy (NRT), bupropion, and varenicline, are designed to cope with nicotine addiction. NRT provides nicotine to ameliorate withdrawal symptoms, and all forms of NRT are equally effective in smoking cessation than placebo. Bupropion, originally developed as an antidepressant, decreases craving, leading to smoking cessation, which makes it one of the first-line drugs for smoking cessation. Many studies have shown that varenicline is the most effective agent for smoking cessation. No significant long-term adverse events have been reported for NRT, bupropion, or varenicline. However, bupropion should not be used in patients with an increased risk for seizure.

scholarly journals Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors Interact with Dopamine in Induction of Striatal Long-Term Depression

2002 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 2541-2549 ◽  
Author(s):  
John G. Partridge ◽  
Subbu Apparsundaram ◽  
Greg A. Gerhardt ◽  
Jennifer Ronesi ◽  
David M. Lovinger
Keyword(s):  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Long Term Depression ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine

scholarly journals Varenicline for Smoking Cessation: a Review

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 215-220
Author(s):  
G P Rauniar ◽  
A Mishra ◽  
D P Sarraf
Keyword(s):  
Smoking Cessation ◽  
Tobacco Use ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Smoking Prevalence ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
First Line ◽  
The World ◽  
Quitting Smoking

Tobacco use is the leading cause of preventable death and disability in the world. Although gradually declining in most developed countries, the prevalence of tobacco use has increased among developing countries. Nicotine is an addictive chemical that is inhaled from the tobacco present in the cigarettes. It acts on neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors within the ventral tegmental area of the brain, causing dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens which reinforces nicotine-seeking behavior. Reward through the dopaminergic system is a common thread among many drugs of addiction. According to the National Anti-Tobacco Communication Campaign Strategy for Nepal smoking prevalence in Nepal is higher (38.4%) than the smoking prevalence in the world (29%). Smoking attributable annual deaths in Nepal is estimated at nearly 14,000 (9,000 male deaths and 5,000 female deaths) for population aged 35 and over. First-line pharmacotherapies for smoking cessation are varenicline, sustained-release bupropion and various forms of nicotine replacement therapy (i.e., patch, gum, lozenge, inhaler, nasal spray). These drugs can be used as monotherapy or combination therapy for the treatment of smoking cessation. After studying the outcome of many clinical trials and meta-analysis, it is concluded that cigarette smokers taking varenicline have the most success quitting smoking as compared with those taking other first-line pharmacotherapies for treating smoking cessation.  Health Renaissance 2014;12(3): 215-220

Cholinergic Currents in Leg Motoneurons of Carausius morosus

2010 ◽  
Vol 103 (5) ◽  
pp. 2770-2782 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eugênio E. Oliveira ◽  
Andreas Pippow ◽  
Vincent L. Salgado ◽  
Ansgar Büschges ◽  
Joachim Schmidt ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Acetylcholine Receptors ◽  
Muscarinic Acetylcholine Receptor ◽  
Stick Insect ◽  
Fluorescent Label ◽  
Receptor Ligands ◽  
Nicotinic Acetylcholine ◽  
Carausius Morosus ◽  
Unequivocal Identification

We used patch-clamp recordings and fast optical Ca2+ imaging to characterize an acetylcholine-induced current ( IACh) in leg motoneurons of the stick insect Carausius morosus. Our long-term goal is to better understand the synaptic and integrative properties of the leg sensory-motor system, which has served extremely successfully as a model to study basic principles of walking and locomotion on the network level. The experiments were performed under biophysically controlled conditions on freshly dissociated leg motoneurons to avoid secondary effects from the network. To allow for unequivocal identification, the leg motoneurons were backfilled with a fluorescent label through the main leg nerve prior to cell dissociation. In 87% of the motoneurons, IACh consisted of a fast-desensitizing ( IACh1) and a slow-desensitizing component ( IACh2), both of which were concentration dependent, with EC50 values of 3.7 × 10−5 and 2.0 × 10−5 M, respectively. Ca2+ imaging revealed that a considerable portion of IACh (∼18%) is carried by Ca2+, suggesting that IACh, besides mediating fast synaptic transmission, could also induce Ca2+-dependent processes. Using specific nicotinic and muscarinic acetylcholine receptor ligands, we showed that IACh was exclusively mediated by nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Distinct concentration–response relations of IACh1 and IACh2 for these ligands indicated that they are mediated by different types of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

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