SMOKERS may find it easier to kick the habit with the help of a drug
originally developed to treat psoriasis, say Canadian scientists. Edward Sellers
and his colleagues at the University of Toronto knew that people whose bodies
have trouble breaking down nicotine are less likely to smoke. After screening
more than 200 compounds, they found one, methoxsalen, that blocks the enzyme the
body uses to metabolise nicotine.
Smokers get withdrawal symptoms when the level of nicotine in their blood
drops. So the Canadian team wanted to know if methoxsalen could delay the start
of withdrawal symptoms by preventing the…
