INTRODUCTION People who metabolize nicotine more quickly are generally less successful at quitting smoking. However, the mechanisms that link individual differences in the nicotine metabolite ratio (NMR), a phenotypic biomarker of the rate of nicotine clearance, to smoking outcomes are unclear. We tested the hypotheses that higher NMR is associated with greater smoking reinforcement, general craving, and cue-induced cigarette craving in a treatment-seeking sample. METHODS Participants were 252 adults who smoke cigarettes enrolled in a randomized controlled smoking cessation trial (NCT03262662) conducted in Buffalo, New York, USA. Participants completed the Choice Behavior Under Cued Conditions (CBUCC) paradigm, a laboratory choice procedure, ~1 week before the first cessation treatment visit, at which time a saliva sample was collected for NMR assessment. On each CBUCC trial, participants reported cigarette craving during cue presentation (cigarette, water) and spent $0.01-$0.25 for a chance (5%-95%) to sample the cue (one puff, sip), providing measures of smoking reinforcement (spending for cigarettes vs. water), general cigarette craving (averaged across cigarette and water cues), and cue-specific craving (cigarette craving during cigarette vs. water cues). RESULTS As observed in prior work, the NMR was significantly higher among White and female participants. As expected, both spending and cigarette craving were significantly greater on cigarette compared to water trials. However, contrary to our hypotheses, higher NMR was not associated with greater smoking reinforcement, general craving, or cue-specific craving. CONCLUSIONS The present data do not support that smoking reinforcement or craving is related to nicotine metabolism among individuals seeking to quit smoking. IMPLICATIONS Though greater smoking reinforcement, general craving, and cue-specific craving are hypothesized to be linked to faster nicotine metabolism, there was no evidence of such relationships in the present sample of adults seeking to quit smoking. Further research, including replication and consideration of alternate hypotheses, is warranted to elucidate the mechanisms by which the NMR is related to smoking cessation.

中文翻译：

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戒烟试验中成人吸烟强化和渴望的尼古丁代谢物比率与实验室评估之间的关系。


简介 尼古丁代谢较快的人通常戒烟不太成功。然而，尼古丁代谢物比率（NMR）（尼古丁清除率的表型生物标志物）的个体差异与吸烟结果之间的联系机制尚不清楚。我们在寻求治疗的样本中测试了这样的假设：较高的 NMR 与较高的吸烟强化、一般渴望以及提示诱导的香烟渴望相关。方法 参与者是 252 名吸烟的成年人，他们参加了在美国纽约州布法罗进行的随机对照戒烟试验 (NCT03262662)。参与者在第一次戒烟治疗就诊前约 1 周完成了提示条件下的选择行为 (CBUCC) 范式，这是一种实验室选择程序，此时收集唾液样本进行 NMR 评估。在每项 CBUCC 试验中，参与者在提示呈现（香烟、水）期间报告了对香烟的渴望，并花费 0.01-0.25 美元获得一次机会 (5%-95%) 尝试提示（一口，小口），提供吸烟强化措施（花费香烟与水）、一般香烟渴望（香烟和水线索的平均值）和特定线索的渴望（香烟与水线索期间的香烟渴望）。结果 正如之前的工作中所观察到的，白人和女性参与者的 NMR 明显较高。正如预期的那样，与水试验相比，香烟的支出和香烟渴望都显着增加。然而，与我们的假设相反，较高的 NMR 与较高的吸烟强化、一般渴望或特定线索的渴望无关。 结论 目前的数据并不支持吸烟强化或吸烟渴望与寻求戒烟的个体中的尼古丁代谢有关。影响 虽然假设更大的吸烟强化、一般渴望和特定提示渴望与更快的尼古丁代谢有关，但在目前寻求戒烟的成年人样本中没有证据表明存在这种关系。需要进一步的研究，包括重复和考虑替代假设，以阐明 NMR 与戒烟相关的机制。