SOCIETY FOR RESEARCH ON NICOTINE AND TOBACCO

The proceedings of the inaugural scientific meeting of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT) are summarized. The primary o bjective of the meeting was to foster the exchange of information on t he effects of nicotine and tobacco use, as well as factors which influ ence their use, drawing from biological, behavioral and social science s. Much of this research can be viewed as a tale of ''two'' drugs-nico tine as a Key to an important public health problem, and nicotine as a classical tool of physiological and pharmacological research. A histo rical overview of research on ''both'' drugs is provided first. Public policy alternatives for reducing the prevalence of tobacco use have b een derived in part from basic and clinical research results and are b riefly outlined. Evidence for genetic determinants on nicotine use and effects is presented using data from twin studies and from molecular genetic research with humans and animals. Consistent with this researc h, there is evidence of individual differences in pharmacokinetics and effects of nicotine, which could account for differences in smoking b ehavior and nicotine dependence. Finally, recent developments in the t herapeutic uses of nicotine and novel nicotinic agonists with schizoph renia, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Tourette's syndrome a nd ulcerative colitis are presented. Overall, the research presented a t the meeting demonstrated the vast diversity of areas of study involv ing nicotine and tobacco, as well as the rich opportunities for cross- communication among researchers from different disciplines.