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Galantamine attenuates some of the subjective effects of intravenous nicotine and improves performance on a Go No-Go task in abstinent cigarette smokers: a preliminary report

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Abstract

Rationale

Galantamine (GAL), a reversible and competitive inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase, is used clinically in the treatment of Alzheimer's dementia. Some preclinical and clinical studies support the potential efficacy of cholinesterase inhibitors for smoking cessation, although their effects on the behavioral and physiological responses to nicotine have not been examined. The goal of this study was to characterize GAL's actions on multiple outcomes, including withdrawal severity and cognitive performance, as well as subjective and physiological responses to nicotine administered intravenously.

Methods

A total of 12 smokers participated in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study. Smokers had two 4-day treatment periods, assigned in random sequence, to GAL (8 mg/day) or placebo treatment. On day 4 of each treatment phase, smokers had an experimental session in which they received an intravenous (IV) dose of saline or 1 mg/70 kg nicotine, 1 h apart, in a random order.

Results

GAL attenuated the self-reported rating of “craving for cigarettes” and prevented decrements in performance in a Go/No-Go task. In response to IV nicotine, GAL treatment attenuated the self-report ratings of “like the drug effects,” “good drug effects,” “bad drug effects,” and “stimulated.”

Conclusions

These findings support the potential utility of GAL as a treatment for smoking cessation.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Veterans Administration's Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC) and the National Institute on Drug Abuse grant K02-DA-021304 (MS). MS serves as an expert witness on behalf of Pfizer in lawsuits related to varenicline.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, VA Connecticut Healthcare System, Yale University, 950 Campbell Ave., Bldg. 36/116A4, West Haven, CT, USA

    Mehmet Sofuoglu & Aryeh I. Herman

  2. The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA

    Yisheng Li

  3. Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD, USA

    Andrew J. Waters

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  1. Mehmet Sofuoglu
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  2. Aryeh I. Herman
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  3. Yisheng Li
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Correspondence to Mehmet Sofuoglu.

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Sofuoglu, M., Herman, A.I., Li, Y. et al. Galantamine attenuates some of the subjective effects of intravenous nicotine and improves performance on a Go No-Go task in abstinent cigarette smokers: a preliminary report. Psychopharmacology 224, 413–420 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-012-2763-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-012-2763-4

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