By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    Improved Digestion
    Five tips to boost digestion and metabolism
    November 4, 2022
    health insurance for young adults
    Benefits of Buying Health Insurance for Your Adults
    January 12, 2023
    broken hip recovery
    4 Ways to Recover from a Broken Hip
    March 14, 2023
    Latest News
    How to Combat Home Sickness After Moving Abroad
    March 19, 2023
    4 Ways to Recover from a Broken Hip
    March 14, 2023
    What Are Dietary Supplements: Purpose, Benefits, & Facts
    March 15, 2023
    5 Benefits of Receiving Acupuncture Regularly
    March 9, 2023
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    What Causes Inflammation? Comprehensive Look At The Causes and Effects of Inflammation
    April 7, 2012
    Everything We Are Doing in Health Policy May Be Completely Wrong
    July 26, 2011
    physician burnout and physician stress three cures are available
    Physician Burnout: Three Symptoms, Three Phases, Three Cures
    April 22, 2012
    Latest News
    3 Ways to Improve the U.S. Healthcare System By 2030
    March 14, 2023
    6 Steps To Ensure Speed And Efficiency Of Clinical Studies
    March 14, 2023
    5 Most Valuable Healthcare Programs in 2023
    March 8, 2023
    The Everest Foundation’s Mission to Support Inclusive Healthcare
    February 24, 2023
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: SNMMI 2013: Molecular Imaging Reveals Problems For Smokers’ Shot
Share
Sign In
Notification Show More
Latest News
mental health tips
Caring for Your Mental Health Should Be a Top Priority
Mental Health
combat home sickness
How to Combat Home Sickness After Moving Abroad
Health News
depression signs
Early Signs of Depression that You Shouldn’t Ignore
Mental Health
positive mental health
How to Build a Positive Mental Health Environment
Mental Health
broken hip recovery
4 Ways to Recover from a Broken Hip
Health
Aa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Aa
Search
Have an existing account? Sign In
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Policy & Law > Public Health > SNMMI 2013: Molecular Imaging Reveals Problems For Smokers’ Shot
Public Health

SNMMI 2013: Molecular Imaging Reveals Problems For Smokers’ Shot

Steve Goldstein
Last updated: 2013/06/10 at 3:30 PM
Steve Goldstein
Share
5 Min Read
Image
SHARE

The “Holy Grail” for researchers in the anti-smoking field is a vaccine that would curb the addiction by inhibiting the action of nicotine and its pleasure-producing chemical response in the brain. (Maybe it should be called the “Anti-Smoking Gun.”) But molecular imaging has revealed that the latest shot for smokers is still a long shot.

The “Holy Grail” for researchers in the anti-smoking field is a vaccine that would curb the addiction by inhibiting the action of nicotine and its pleasure-producing chemical response in the brain. (Maybe it should be called the “Anti-Smoking Gun.”) But molecular imaging has revealed that the latest shot for smokers is still a long shot.

The news was released during the 2013 annual meeting of the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging in Vancouver, B.C. SNMMI has returned to Canada, a favored locale, after last year’s session in Miami Beach. Vancouver is the polar opposite of Miami, and that’s not just a commentary on the difference in temperatures. You might need a sweater or an anorak here in the Pacific Northwest, but it’s a scenic wonderland and Canadians are, well, notoriously friendly.

Image

More Read

Medicine Doctor

5 Compelling Reasons to See a Functional Medicine Doctor

Examining Whether Socialized Medicine Will Ever Happen in America
Creating an effective care plan: The ultimate guide
7 Incredibly Important Benefits of Purchasing Health Insurance
3 Ways to Improve Your Health That Have Nothing to Do With Diet and Exercise

No doubt the setting is a bit distracting to the more than 5,000 attendees and the 173 exhibitors. Especially when the meeting site, the stylish Vancouver Convention Center, is sited alongside the Vancouver cruise ship terminal boarding lucky passengers for a trip up Alaska’s inside Passage.

Some 1,600 scientific abstracts will be presented during the meeting, which concludes Wednesday. Nuclear medicine is a medical specialty that uses small amounts of radioactive materials (radiopharmaceuticals) to diagnose, guide management and treat disease. Most nuclear medicine procedures are molecular imaging procedures that use radioactive substances to visualize the molecular processes through which the body functions. Molecular level data — more precise than anatomical or structural data — helps physicians personalize treatment.

A study led by Alexey G. Mukhin, MD, PhD, professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at Duke University Medical Center used molecular imaging to demonstrate that a proposed vaccine produced no desirable effect and potentially allowed even more nicotine accumulation in the brain in some cases due to variations in immune response. “This research represents one of the first human studies of its kind using molecular imaging to test an investigational anti-nicotine immunization and how it affects the accumulation of nicotine in the brain during smoking,” said Mukhin.

The anti-nicotine immunization introduces an antigen that induces production of antibodies that bind circulating nicotine and prevent it from crossing the blood-brain barrier to produce rewarding effects — an addictive “high” — for smokers. “In order to work, one milligram of the nicotine from smoking one cigarette needs about half a gram of antibody for proper attachment and prevention with brain nicotinic receptors,” said Duke research team member Yantao Zuo, PhD. “A very high number of antibodies is needed to negate the effects of nicotine from one pack of cigarettes — up to 10 percent of the 100 grams of antibodies we have available in the body.”Image

So, if the binding of nicotine with antibodies is weak and the nicotine-antibody bond breaks during passage of the blood through the brain, potentially more nicotine could flood brain nicotinic receptors. “Investigational anti-nicotinic vaccines produce non-uniform effects,” Mukhin said. “Ideally we want it to decrease the amount of nicotine that reaches the brain, but when we compared the immune response across subjects, their antibodies appeared to vary in nicotine-binding properties. Findings from positron emission tomography (PET) showed that strong nicotine-antibody binding, which means high affinity, was associated with a decrease in brain nicotine accumulation. But when binding was not strong, an increase in brain accumulation was observed.”

The results are crucial, said Mukhin, because they reveal that the quality of the antibody is as important as the amount of antibody. Low-affinity antibodies can negate the anti-nicotine effects of the vaccination.

Bottom line: A shot in the arm is not going to replace willpower anytime soon for smokers hoping to quit. Mukhin said further studies and other concepts for vaccination are in the pipeline. Perhaps Mayor Mike Bloomberg needs to step in!

smoker image: smoker/shutterstock

TAGGED: smoking vaccine

Sign Up For Daily Newsletter

Be keep up! Get the latest breaking news delivered straight to your inbox.
By signing up, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe at any time.
Steve Goldstein June 10, 2013
Share this Article
Facebook Twitter Copy Link Print
Share
Previous Article Connected Health Companies to Watch
Next Article SNMMI 2013: Siemens Takes The Wraps Off Two Major Innovations

Stay Connected

1.5k Followers Like
4.5k Followers Follow
2.8k Followers Pin
136k Subscribers Subscribe

Latest News

mental health tips
Caring for Your Mental Health Should Be a Top Priority
Mental Health March 19, 2023
combat home sickness
How to Combat Home Sickness After Moving Abroad
Health News March 19, 2023
depression signs
Early Signs of Depression that You Shouldn’t Ignore
Mental Health March 19, 2023
positive mental health
How to Build a Positive Mental Health Environment
Mental Health March 15, 2023

You Might also Like

Health carePublic Health

Do You Need Life Insurance? What Does It Cover?

December 23, 2022

Do I Qualify for Social Security Disability Benefits if I Got Injured on My Way to Work?

August 23, 2022
Right Medicare Supplement Plan
Health carePublic Health

What If You Need Emergency Care and Don’t Have Insurance?

February 15, 2022
Psychiatrists are now working online
Global HealthcareHealth ReformMental HealthPolicy & LawPublic Health

Psychiatrists Now Working Online: How the Mental Healthcare Industry Is Evolving

December 12, 2021
//

We influence million of users and is the most authentic source of information on healthcare business and technology news.

Quick Links

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Subscribe

Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!

Follow US

© 2008-2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.

Removed from reading list

Undo
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?