Smoking addiction linked to genes

February 5, 2008 by cemery

Scientists have known for decades that most of the risk for heavy smoking -- at least a pack a day -- is influenced by genetics. But they need sexier names for these genes. Here's one reason why:

Many anti-smoking medications are only effective for some smokers, and only for a few months. So researchers are trying to narrow down which genes are responsible for the smoking habit, in hopes they can help tailor anti-smoking medications to an individual's needs.

In a paper published last week, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania studied the genetics of 14,000 people from the U.S. and Europe and found two genes that produce brain proteins that bind to nicotine. By looking at a second group of 8,000 people, they found common features in the CHRNA5/CHRNA3 gene cluster, on chromosome 15, that predisposes people to become heavy smokers.

Read more at The Baltimore Sun blog Science Matters.