Abstract
While tobacco use continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the world, current pharmacological treatments fall short. The most commonly prescribed smoking cessation drug, varenicline (commonly known as Chantix) targets the high affinity α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor that is densely expressed in the mesolimbic reward pathway. As a result of limited efficacy and a vast array of negative side effects associated with varenicline, research has been focused on finding novel targets for treating this disorder. The medial habenula-interpeduncular nucleus pathway is an alternate reward pathway in the brain. Previous research has implicated this pathway as an upstream modulator of the mesolimbic reward pathway. Currently, evidence points to receptors, specifically the α3β4 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor that is near exclusively expressed in this pathway and other receptors such as the substance P receptor as new potential targets for treating nicotine addiction.
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