New Therapy for Nicotine Addiction

New Therapy for Nicotine Addiction

A vaccine that might help smokers quit and prevent addiction in new or casual smokers has been developed by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. According to the study, published in the June issue of Science Translational Medicine, the vaccine encourages the recipient’s liver to continuously produce antibodies that clear the bloodstream of nicotine before it reaches the brain and delivers its addictive rush. While previously tested nicotine vaccines have lasted only a few weeks—requiring repeated, expensive injections—the effects of a single dose of the new vaccine are designed to last a lifetime.

The team emphasizes this is a genetic vaccine, which differs from the more common active and passive types. Whereas an active vaccine creates immunity through the introduction of a foreign substance or virus and a passive vaccine delivers ready-made antibodies, a genetic vaccine uses genetically engineered DNA to create an immune response. The research team added the genetic sequence of an engineered nicotine antibody to an adeno-associated virus. The genetic sequence of the antibody inserts itself into the nucleus of liver cells, causing the liver to churn out antibodies that neutralize the nicotine as it enters the bloodstream.

Using mice as subjects, the study revealed that the vaccine continuously produces high levels of the antibody, so that little of the nicotine administered to the subjects reached the brain. A professor and chairman of genetic medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College, Ronald G. Crystal, MD, says that if the vaccine is found to be safe for human use, it would best be administered to smokers who are committed to quitting. “They will know that if they start smoking again, they will receive no pleasure from it due to the nicotine vaccine,” he explains, “and this can help them kick the habit.”