wanna quit smoking? how about a nicotine vaccine?

[moshquerade]

Nicotine vaccine is set to stub out smoking
SCIENTISTS will today unveil results from the first large-scale human trial into a vaccine for nicotine which could see people immunised against addictions to smoking within the next five years.

A Swiss pharmaceutical company will reveal the outcome of a six-month vaccine trial of 300 volunteers, all of whom were heavy smokers before receiving injections to counter the habit.

Addiction experts said last night that the closely-guarded results, which are to be set out at the American Society of Clinical Oncology?s annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, were likely to be positive and could prove a watershed in the quest to introduce a nicotine vaccine.
Cytos Biotechnology is the first to report back on a large group trial of the drug, but two other firms, including Cambridge-based Xenova Research, are to launch similar studies imminently.

The three trial drugs, which are taken as a course of between four and six injections, work by stimulating the production of antibodies in the blood. These antibodies stop nicotine from entering the brain and producing the addictive sensation craved by smokers.

The body?s immune system does not normally react to nicotine, but scientists have combined the chemical with a protein to trigger a ?blocking? response. The antibodies which are produced attach themselves to nicotine circulating in the bloodstream, forming a compound that is to big to cross into the brain.

Early trials in mice and small-scale human studies have shown that the vaccine can significantly reduce the euphoric rush of both nicotine and cocaine.

A spokesman for Cytos said that the six-month results, which were finalised this week, would provide proof of concept not only for a nicotine vaccine, but other vaccines for conditions such as asthma and Alzheimer?s using similar antibody responses.

Campbell Bunce, an immunologist working for Xenova, said that he expected Cytos?s findings for its vaccine to be positive. He said that even if it did not live up to expectations, the vaccine could still prove a very important weapon against smoking used in combination with other anti-addiction treatments such as nicotine patches, gum and antidepression drugs.

Every year in the UK around 114,000 people die as a result of smoking ? a fifth of all UK deaths ? with lung cancer, coronary heart disease and chronic obstructive lung disease claiming most lives. Around 13 million adults in Britain smoke cigarettes ? 28 per cent of men and 26 per cent of women ? while one in ten teenagers is categorised as a regular smoker. For both sexes, the proportion of adults who smoke is highest in those aged 20 to 24.

The NHS spent £32.3 million to help smokers to quit in the eight months to December.

?We are making real steps forward,? Dr Bunce said. ?I am very optimistic about the vaccines. I think they have a very good chance of working. We have seen that smokers who have received the vaccine do report a definite reduced sense of pleasure from cigarettes when on vaccines.?

Research from a small-scale trial confirmed such conclusions. A total of 60 subjects who smoked between 10 and 75 cigarettes a day were divided into three cohorts. In the placebo group, just 8 per cent of volunteers were still not smoking cigarettes after 12 months, compared with more than a third of those in one group receiving a high dose of the vaccine.

Deborah Arnott, director of Action on Smoking and Health, said that vaccines offered the chance for a major advance.

But although the West might benefit, the rest of the world would probably be neglected because of the expense. ?We still have to worry about stopping people from becoming addicted to smoking in the first place,? she said.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1612028,00.html

 

[TwiceOver]

Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

 

[Aquaman]

Is that made of "tomacco"?

Cheers,
Aquaman

 

[moshquerade]

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

 

[Fingolfin269]

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

This is my problem. I am fine without smoking throughout the day but once you get me into a social settting, especially one where beer is involved, and all I can think about is smoking... and uhh chicks.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

QFT

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

But this mohagany has such a fine taste...

 

[TwiceOver]

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

 

[Fingolfin269]

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

Yup, I made it 6 months once. It became okay to have one a day, then two a day, then four, then the next thing I knew I was right back up to where I was 6 months earlier and it only took about 2 weeks to get there.

*BTW, I'm currently 6 weeks smoke free. We'll see how this goes.

 

[moshquerade]

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

would you consider this vaccine if it becomes readily available?

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

Doesen't that kinda validate her point?

I'm sure it's different for everyone, so I'm going to have to say it's both.

The article is kinda confusing, though. How does blocking the nicotine from getting to your brain equal a vaccine?

Sounds like a good way to give yourself uncontrollable withdrawls for a few days, lol.

And what if you want to smoke but don't want to become addicted? You could take the vaccine, but that would negate any physical effects from smoking.....

Seems kinda weird.

 

[TwiceOver]

I don't think people are getting my point. There are two components to the addiction of smoking, Nicotine and the Physical habit. Solving nicotine cravings isn't the end all of smoking.

 

[StageLeft]

Originally posted by: Fingolfin269

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

Yup, I made it 6 months once. It became okay to have one a day, then two a day, then four, then the next thing I knew I was right back up to where I was 6 months earlier and it only took about 2 weeks to get there.

*BTW, I'm currently 6 weeks smoke free. We'll see how this goes.

Get a picture of somebody dying in hospital at 55 from smoking and look at it every time you feel like smoking

 

[Looney]

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

Some do... not a twig, but some substitute gum (regular gum), toothpicks, pens, etc.

The nicotine itself was the easiest thing to quit... that's why you see people quitting for a week or two all the time, but it's the years of habit that's hard to break. Even after all these years, sometimes i have a craving for a cigarette.... and it's been about 4-5 years since i've had one, so i'm pretty sure it's out of my system.

 

[Gibsons]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

Doesen't that kinda validate her point?

I'm sure it's different for everyone, so I'm going to have to say it's both.

The article is kinda confusing, though. How does blocking the nicotine from getting to your brain equal a vaccine?

It's basically an immunization against nicotine.

A vaccine works by eliciting an immune response. In other words, it causes the production of antibodies which are highly specific to the foreign substance. This is the same idea, they just used some hapten to get an immune response to nicotine.

 

[Gibsons]

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
I don't think people are getting my point. There are two components to the addiction of smoking, Nicotine and the Physical habit. Solving nicotine cravings isn't the end all of smoking.

Note that there's no market for nicotine-free cigarettes.

 

[Ausm]

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

would you consider this vaccine if it becomes readily available?

I quit cold turkey about 14 months ago and it was the hardest thing I ever done. I would have tried the vaccine if it was available when I was quitting.

Ausm

 

[Gibsons]

Originally posted by: Looney

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

Some do... not a twig, but some substitute gum (regular gum), toothpicks, pens, etc.

The nicotine itself was the easiest thing to quit... that's why you see people quitting for a week or two all the time, but it's the years of habit that's hard to break. Even after all these years, sometimes i have a craving for a cigarette.... and it's been about 4-5 years since i've had one, so i'm pretty sure it's out of my system.

You don't have nicotine in your system, but you still have a very powerful association of the physical act of smoking to a dose of nicotine.

Heroin addicts can kick the habit for years and relapse, it's not because they miss sticking a needle in their arm.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: Gibsons

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

Doesen't that kinda validate her point?

I'm sure it's different for everyone, so I'm going to have to say it's both.

The article is kinda confusing, though. How does blocking the nicotine from getting to your brain equal a vaccine?

It's basically an immunization against nicotine.

A vaccine works by eliciting an immune response. In other words, it causes the production of antibodies which are highly specific to the foreign substance. This is the same idea, they just used some hapten to get an immune response to nicotine.

Umm, I realize that.. Did you read the rest of my post?

This isn't a "nicotine addiction vaccination", it's a "nicotine vaccination".

If the point is to help people that want to quit doso by causing them to have unavoidable withdrawl symptoms, I can understand... In essence, chemically forcing them to quit.

Maybe that was never an item of discussion, lol. For some reason I thought someone was talking about it in the context that you could somehow get this vaccine and then not become addicted.

That's true, you wouldn't become addicted.. but only because your brain wouldn't be recieving the nicotine in the first place.

 

[Gibsons]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: Gibsons

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: TwiceOver

Originally posted by: moshquerade

Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Meh, many smokers are mostly addicted to the habit of smoking and not really the nicotine.

i disagree... otherwise, they would do fine holding a twig in their hand and puffing on it.

As a smoker I would have to disagree. After so many days the nicotine leaves the body, I can't remember how long something like 3-10 days depending on how much you smoke. Everytime I had quit it was easy to make these days. The problem I always had was habit times such as waiting, or after eating. I once quit for 8 months and was brought back in by the habit alone.

Doesen't that kinda validate her point?

I'm sure it's different for everyone, so I'm going to have to say it's both.

The article is kinda confusing, though. How does blocking the nicotine from getting to your brain equal a vaccine?

It's basically an immunization against nicotine.

A vaccine works by eliciting an immune response. In other words, it causes the production of antibodies which are highly specific to the foreign substance. This is the same idea, they just used some hapten to get an immune response to nicotine.

Umm, I realize that.. Did you read the rest of my post?

This isn't a "nicotine addiction vaccination", it's a "nicotine vaccination".

If the point is to help people that want to quit doso by causing them to have unavoidable withdrawl symptoms, I can understand... In essence, chemically forcing them to quit.

Maybe that was never an item of discussion, lol. For some reason I thought someone was talking about it in the context that you could somehow get this vaccine and then not become addicted.

That's true, you wouldn't become addicted.. but only because your brain wouldn't be recieving the nicotine in the first place.

oh, I see what you were saying. my bad.

 

[homestarmy]

I feel proud to live in the Orlando area today.