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Kicking the habit

Ask any smoker whether they enjoy being addicted to nicotine and you are likely to met with a resounding "No". Unfortunately, along with the psychological and habitual links with smoking, the nicotine in each cigarette is what keeps smokers coming back for more.

But help could be just around the corner thanks to new research in America, where scientists have recently announced a new vaccine that floods the body with an antibody to assault nicotine entering the body, which, if all goes to plan, could mark the end of addiction to the evil weed.

Although the vaccine has yet to only be tested on mice, the results of the study, published in Science Translational Medicine, showed levels of nicotine in the brain were reduced by up to 85 per cent after they received the vaccine. The antibodies contained in the anti-smoking medicine are designed to attack the nicotine as it enters the blood, basically eating up all the remnants that gets in its way - not unlike the Pacman computer game - before the harmful and addictive drug can have any biological effects on the body.

The team of scientists behind the research found that the amount of nicotine in the brains of normal mice - who had been exposed to nicotine - was 85 per cent higher than the amount showing in the brains of mice who had been vaccinated. On a simple level, the vaccine contains a genetically modified virus, which in turn contains the "instructions" for making nicotine antibodies. The vaccine is used to infect the liver, which then turns the liver into a "factory" whereby the nicotine antibodies can be produced continuously.

While the research has caused quite a stir among the world of science, smokers need not get too excited about finally finding a "miracle cure" just yet. It is not yet known whether the effects of the animal trials could be repeated in humans or whether the amount that human addiction can be lowered would be enough to help people kick the habit for good. The scientists behind the vaccine are hopeful, however, that human trials could start to take place within the next few years with further research.

So, while a vaccine like this could eventually provide the "cure" for smokers, shaking off the other habits associated with smoking; the need to do something with their hands, hunger pangs, routine and comfort to name a few, is still down to the individual. With further research however, scientists may just have discovered the key to overcoming the physical effects of nicotine addiction, which could mark the end of a dangerous pastime for many and see smokers across the globe finally untangle themselves and break free from the evil weed. 

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