Exam 2: Nicotine

Question 1

what is nicotine

Answer 1

an alkaloid found in tobacco leaves

• large and small leaf varieties
• nicotine content for commercially grown tobacco leaves is as much as 6% for addictive part of tobacco

Question 2

some history of nicotine

Answer 2

-indigenous people smoked it for religion
-1st encountered by European when Columbus came
-europe commercialized growh of it in virginia colony
-firt medical concern - 17th century
-in 1828 nicotine isolated from tobacco by french chemist
-mainly chewing tobacco before 1900s
-smoking inc
negative ehalth consequences by surgeon general in 11960s
2003-ecigs

Question 3

legal status 1994-200s

Answer 3

1994- FDA requested to regulate them - not approved
1996-FDA approved to limit access and ads to kids and adolescents
2000-FDA cannot regulate tobacco products unless granted authority by congress
2009-tobacco products under FDA control

Question 4

can FDA ask companies to remove nicotine from their products

Answer 4

no

- can only regulate if there is a concern

Question 5

reasons people may use nicotine

Answer 5

• establish feelings of independence
• improve self image
• enhance social acceptance
• counteract stress and boredom
• curiosity

Question 6

factors that predict smoking

Answer 6

• poor academic performance
• rebelliousness
• sensation seeking
• smoking by family/friends

Question 7

stages in developing a smoking habit

Answer 7

1a: nonsmoking-precontemplation - does not intend to start
1b: nonsmoking-contemplation or preparation-thinking about starting
2: initiation or tried
3: experimentation
4: regular smoker- on regular basis, at parties, weekends
5: established smoker - nicotine dependent

Question 8

what is smoking a major cause of

Answer 8

illness and premature death

Question 9

tobacco use counts for 1/3 of all _______

Answer 9

cancers
- mouth, pharynx, laryna, esophagus, stomach, lung, cervix, kidney, bladder, throat, pancreas
linked to 90% lung cancer causes

Question 10

secondhand smoke

Answer 10

inhalation of tobacco smoke by people other than the “active” smoker
- causes 3000 lung cancer death amongst nonsmokers

Question 11

what does secondhand smoke increase people’s risk for

Answer 11

• cardiovascular disease
• childhood asthma
• sudden infant death syndrome

Question 12

pharmokinetics

Answer 12

ADME - what the body does to the drug

Question 13

routes of administration for nicotine

Answer 13

-buccal (chew), intranasal (snuff), oral (losenge), transdermal patch, nasal spray, inhalation (cigs, vapes)

oral, transdermal, nasal spray are used when people are trying to stop smoking

Question 14

where is it uncommon for nicotine to be absorbed in the body

Answer 14

GI tract

Question 15

nicotine absorption is dependent on what

Answer 15

pH
nicotine is a weak base pH= 8
in acidic environment: ionized- poorly absorbed across membrane
in alkaline: nonionized: well absorbed

Question 16

at physiological pH, what percent of nicotine is non-ionized

Answer 16

31%

Question 17

what is the most common method for getting nicotine into the bloodstream

Answer 17

inhalation

Question 18

inhalation of nicotine

Answer 18

• nicotine distilled from burning tobacco and caries droplets containing water, tar, and nicotine into the lungs (high SA)
• nicotine rapidly absorbed across respiratory epithelium

Question 19

what has cancer causing agent in nicotine

Answer 19

tar

Question 20

a typical cigarette has how much nicotine?

How much does it take to kill you?

Answer 20

6-20mg
30-60mg is a lethal dose for 150lb person
so 2 cigarettes has enough to kill you

Question 21

why don’t people di from acute cigarette smoking if it only takes 2 cigarettes to kill you?

Answer 21

only 1-3mg of nicotine is absorbed
amount available depends on number and length of puffs
may have developed tolerance

Question 22

Buccal absorption

Answer 22

pH in mouth = 7
acidic media - cigarettes
alkaline media-pipes, cigars, snuff, chews, nicotine gums, lozenges

Question 23

How can beverages alter pH and affect absorption

Answer 23

coffee and alcohol are acidic
- if drinking at same time as smoking, pH will be adjusted, there is less ionization and it will absorb better into the system with cigarettes

• with chews and alkaline substances the coffee would make it harder to be absorbed into the system

Question 24

absorption: skin and GI tract

Answer 24

nicotine readily absorbed through intact skin - transdermal patched

nicotine absorbed into SI BUT has low bioavailability due to 1st pass metabolism
- sublingual tablets and lozenges avoid 1st pass metabolism

Question 25

route of administration effects

Answer 25

nicotine blood concentration levels

Question 26

distribution of nicotine

Answer 26

• BBB permeable
• reaches brain in 7-20s following inhalation
• peak levels in lungs, blood, brain in 10 min

peaks in brain quickly even though slow inc in blood concentration
nicotine use higher in e cigs than cigs

Question 27

metabolism of nicotine- liver

Answer 27

removed from brain within 30 min

-70% broken down into active metabolite cotinine by cytochrome p450 2A6!!!!

Question 28

metabolism of nicotine: lungs

Answer 28

metabolized to cotinine and nicotine-N-oxide

Question 29

excretion of nicotine

Answer 29

10-20% excreted unchanged in the urine

Question 30

what is detected in drug test for nicotine

Answer 30

cotinine is detected

can be in urine for several days

Question 31

people with low cytochrome p450 2A6 activity _______

Answer 31

are less likely to become smokers, and if they do they have a greater success in stopping bc it builds in their system longer - get neg effects and not pleasurable ones
genetic polymorphisms play role

Question 32

half lives of nicotine and cotinine

Answer 32

nicotine: 2hrs
cotinine: 19 hrs
to avoid withdrawal they continue smoking throughout day

Question 33

ways to excrete nicotine

Answer 33

urine

breastmilk - can give to baby