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hubie [soylentnews.org] writes:

Coffee and cigarettes: UF Health research sheds new light on nicotine and morning brew [ufhealth.org]:

For some smokers, the first cigarette of the day is just not as satisfying without a cup of coffee. That could be more than just a morning habit: Chemical compounds in roasted coffee beans may help lighten the effects of morning nicotine cravings, University of Florida researchers have found.

In a cell-based study, the researchers identified two compounds in coffee that directly affect certain high-sensitivity nicotine receptors in the brain. In smokers, these brain receptors can be hypersensitive after a night of nicotine withdrawal.

The recently published findings have yet to be tested in humans but are an important step toward better understanding how coffee and cigarettes affect nicotine receptors in the brain, said Roger L. Papke, Ph.D., a pharmacology professor in the UF College of Medicine. Caffeine is coffee's feel-good ingredient for most people but smokers may get another kind of boost.

[...] The findings have led Papke to a broader hypothesis: One of the compounds in brewed coffee, known as n-MP, may help to quell morning nicotine cravings.

[...] The findings, he said, provide a good foundation for behavioral scientists who could further study nicotine withdrawal in animal models.

Journal Reference:
Roger L.Papkea, Madison Karaffaa, Nicole A.Horenstein, et al., Coffee and cigarettes: Modulation of high and low sensitivity α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors by n-MP, a biomarker of coffee consumption☆, Neuropharmacology, 216, 2022. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2022.109173 [doi.org]

Original Submission