Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Human Trials Of Anti-Smoking Vaccine Begin

Posted by timothy on from the pleasure-reduction dept.

Makarand writes "A Nicotine vaccine that may help smokers to quit has made it to human trials. The vaccine is administered as a series of eight shots -- patients receive two shots per visit during four different visits. The vaccine works by stimulating the human immune system to produce antibodies that bind with the nicotine molecules to form a larger complex molecule which cannot pass through the blood/brain barrier to get into the brain. As a result smokers will not feel the 'high' from the cigarettes they light up and lose interest in smoking. Preliminary studies have shown that this vaccine is safe in humans." (Each link goes to a slightly different version of the same wire story.)

2 of 119 comments (clear)

  1. They need to get this down to one shot by RalphBNumbers · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Seriously, people are going to get cold feet after a visit or two to the doctor when they're starting to really feel the pull of addiction, and realize that they are permanently destroying their ability to get a fix.

    They need to get this vaccine down to something that can be administered in one visit, so people don't have a chance to get cold feet after the begining.

    If they can make this something joe six-pack-a-day can just do one afternoon on an impulse, then I'll be really impressed.

    Of course, then how long will it be until cigarette companies come out with anti-vacine cigs?

    --
    "The worst tyrannies were the ones where a governance required its own logic on every embedded node." - Vernor Vinge
  2. Lont time smoker's point of view by c.r.o.c.o · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I have to admit that I have been smoking for the past 9 years. Considering that I'm only 24 years old, that's a very long time. I've tried quitting cold turkey, I've tried the patch, the gum, and they all worked up to a point. Every time I tried quitting smoking, I stopped for a few days, but afterwards, I just had to start again. It wasn't the addiction that much, but simply the fact that I enjoy smoking too much.

    Before I get all the replies describing all the side effects of smoking, you should know that I can do 150 push-ups every day, I can ride a bicycle for 30kms in about an hour through Toronto (which has its share of hills). So I'm still pretty healthy. When I'll get older this won't be the case anymore, but that's still a way off, so it doesn't feel like such a threat.

    I guess this vaccine might work for me. If I can't derive pleasure from smoking, then I might have a chance of quitting. Because my willpower in this respect sure isn't helping.