Nicotine and Smoking Cessation Flashcards
Why do you think tobacco plants make nicotine? How would it benefit them?
nicotine protects the plants – if insects try to eat tobacco leaves, they get a dose of nicotine, which affects their nervous systems
What is cotinine and how is it useful?
it is the metabolite of nicotine, and it can be used to gauge a person’s exposure to second hand smoke
Does smoking damage the heart? Or does nicotine damage the heart? Explain
nicotine can speed up the heart rate and blood pressure, while carbon monoxide in cigarette smoke decreases oxygen to the heart
both can damage the heart
What does the term “pharmacotherapy” mean, in the context of smoking cessation?
it mean the medical treatment of nicotine addiction with drugs
Chantix is a partial agonist at the nAch receptor. What does that mean and how could it help with people stop smoking?
partial agonists occupy the receptor, but produce less of a response than a full agonist (nicotine) or the endogenous neurotransmitter (acetylcholine)
for smoking cessation, Chantix would occupy the receptor that nicotine would bind to (so nicotine can’t get in, making smoking less satisfying) and produce a partial effect (which would block withdrawal)
