The purpose of the study is to use O. intermedium DN2 to degrade nicotine in tobacco extracts for making reconstituted tobacco. Firstly, we studied the effects of various factors on degradation of nicotine in the extracts by strain DN2. When we added 0.1% yeast extract into the extracts, adjusted its pH value to 7.0 by ammonia solution, inoculated 15% cultures and maintained fermentation temperature of 30 degrees C, the degradation rate of nicotine by strain DN2 was the fastest. Furthmore, under these conditions, we studied the degradation rates of nicotine in three fed batches culture which carried out in a 30-L reactor, the result showed that the average degradation rate of nicotine by strain DN2 was 140.55 mg/L/h, which was much higher than that reported in other studies. These results indicated that strain DN2 may be useful for reducing nicotine content of reconstituted tobacco.
Nicotine ; metabolism ; Ochrobactrum ; classification ; metabolism ; Plant Extracts ; metabolism ; Tobacco ; chemistry

Nicotine is the main component for smoking addiction. It is widely believed that nicotine dependence is heritable. Many studies are committed to study the effects of specific gene polymorphisms connect with nicotine dependence. Release of dopamine has been considered the most important channel for nicotine dependence. This paper provides a review for recent advance in studies on dopamine system related genetic polymorphisms associated with nicotine dependence.
Animals ; Dopamine ; metabolism ; Humans ; Nicotine ; metabolism ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Tobacco Use Disorder ; genetics ; metabolism

OBJECTIVES: The prevalence of smoking in schizophrenic patients (74-92%) is higher than that of all psychiatric patients (34-54%) or general population (30-35%). This higher smoking Prevalence is demonstrated even after controlling for known confounders, such as marital status, alcohol use, and socioeconomic status. This study was conducted to determine whether there would be any difference in nicotine intake and metabolism between schizophrenics and normal controls. METHODS: Sixteen schizophrenic patients and sixteen normal controls were collected. All subjects were supplied with a pack of cigarette a day. Urinary cotinine excretion was measured by using gas chromatographic mass spectrometric method. RESULTS: Cotinine excretion was significantly increased in schizophrenic patients compared to normal controls (p<0.05). None of variables such as age at initial smoking, the average number of cigarettes at initial smoking, pack year (packs daily smoked x smoking year), abstinence history were found to influence cotinine levels when examined via the ANOVA, even when the interaction with diagnosis was considered. CONCLUSION: This result suggests that nicotine intake and consumption are increased in schizophrenic patients compared to normal controls, which can be an attempt to improve sensory inhibition and counteract neuronal effect of antipsychotic medications.
Cotinine* ; Diagnosis ; Humans ; Marital Status ; Metabolism ; Neurons ; Nicotine ; Prevalence ; Schizophrenia ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Social Class ; Tobacco Products

Chronic psychological stress can promote vascular diseases, such as hypertension and atherosclerosis. This study aims to explore the effects and mechanism of chronic psychological stress on aortic medial calcification (AMC). Rat arterial calcification model was established by nicotine gavage in combination with vitamin D₃ (VitD₃) intramuscular injection, and rat model of chronic psychological stress was induced by humid environment. Aortic calcification in rats was evaluated by using Alizarin red staining, aortic calcium content detection, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity assay. The expression levels of the related proteins, including vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) contractile phenotype marker SM22α, osteoblast-like phenotype marker RUNX2, and endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS) markers (GRP78 and CHOP), were determined by Western blot. The results showed that chronic psychological stress alone induced AMC in rats, further aggravated AMC induced by nicotine in combination with VitD₃, promoted the osteoblast-like phenotype transformation of VSMCs and aortic ERS activation, and significantly increased the plasma cortisol levels. The 11β-hydroxylase inhibitor metyrapone effectively reduced chronic psychological stress-induced plasma cortisol levels and ameliorated AMC and aortic ERS in chronic psychological stress model rats. Conversely, the glucocorticoid receptor agonist dexamethasone induced AMC, promoted AMC induced by nicotine combined with VitD₃, and further activated aortic ERS. The above effects of dexamethasone could be inhibited by ERS inhibitor 4-phenylbutyrate. These results suggest that chronic psychological stress can lead to the occurrence and development of AMC by promoting glucocorticoid synthesis, which may provide new strategies and targets for the prevention and control of AMC.
Rats ; Animals ; Glucocorticoids/metabolism* ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Nicotine/metabolism* ; Hydrocortisone/metabolism* ; Muscle, Smooth, Vascular ; Dexamethasone/metabolism* ; Vascular Calcification/metabolism* ; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle/metabolism* ; Cells, Cultured

Blakeslea trispora is a natural source of carotenoids, including β-carotene and lycopene, which have industrial applications. Therefore, classical selective breeding techniques have been applied to generate strains with increased productivity, and microencapsulated β-carotene preparation has been used in food industry (Li et al., 2019). In B. trispora, lycopene is synthesized via the mevalonate pathway (Venkateshwaran et al., 2015). Lycopene cyclase, which is one of the key enzymes in this pathway, is a bifunctional enzyme that can catalyze the cyclization of lycopene to produce β-carotene and exhibit phytoene synthase activity (He et al., 2017).
Citric Acid Cycle ; Fermentation ; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry/methods* ; Lycopene/metabolism* ; Mucorales/metabolism* ; Nicotine/pharmacology* ; beta Carotene/biosynthesis*

Alleles ; Animals ; Aryl Hydrocarbon Hydroxylases ; genetics ; metabolism ; Cytochrome P-450 CYP2A6 ; Humans ; Mixed Function Oxygenases ; genetics ; metabolism ; Nicotine ; metabolism ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Tobacco Use Disorder ; metabolism

PURPOSE: This study was performed in order to examine the effects of an smoking cessation counselling program for smoking cessation success. METHOD: Among a total of 468 persons who had ceased from smoking for 6-months and had visited the smoking cessation clinic of a public health center from January 2nd to December 31th in 2006, 61 in all who had a negative reaction in the urine nicotine check were selected for this study. Collected data were expiratory CO concentration, BMI, blood pressure, liver function, and lipid metabolism. These data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, repeated measured ANOVA and paired t-test with the SPSS/PC(Version 12.0) program. RESULT: There were significant changes in expiratory CO concentration, SBP, DBP, AST, ALT, and TG, but not in BMI, gamma-GTP, TC, HDL-C, and LDL-C. CONCLUSION: This study showed that smoking cessation through a smoking cessation counselling program has partially positive effects for smoking cessation success. The results of this study show that the smoking cessation counselling program at the smoking cessation clinic of a public health center should be continued for smoking cessation success.
Blood Pressure* ; Body Mass Index ; Humans ; Lipid Metabolism* ; Liver Function Tests ; Liver* ; Nicotine ; Public Health ; Smoke ; Smoking ; Smoking Cessation*

OBJECTIVEUsing the stable isotopes as the internal standard of microdialysis technology to establish a new method to study the whole and local brain dynamics of nicotine percutaneous preparations.

METHODUsing th healthy rats as experimental animals, administrating nicotine in abdominal transdermal way, then sample in the blood and brain simultaneously by microdialysis which use deuterium nicotine (DL-nicotine) as internal standard. Detecting the samples by LC-MS/MS method.

RESULTThe configuration process in blood and brain both conforms to 2 compartments model, t1/2 is 29.38 min, t1/2beta is 208.51 min, AUC(0-infinity) is 152 127.10 microg x min x L(-1) in the blood t1/2 is 86.64 min, t1/2beta is 386.00 min, AUC(0-infinity) is 152 820.90 microg x min x L(-1) in the brain.

CONCLUSIONDl-nicotine can be used as internal standard of nicotine to correcte the recovery; Stable isotopes internal standard microdialysis technology can be used for studing the whole and the local pharmacokinetic of nicotine and also provide new ideas and methods to studing the process of new drug delivery system.

Animals ; Brain ; metabolism ; Brain Chemistry ; Deuterium ; chemistry ; Isotope Labeling ; methods ; Male ; Microdialysis ; methods ; Nicotine ; blood ; pharmacokinetics ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley

Nicotine enhances the function of learning and memory, but the underlying mechanism still remains unclear. Hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP) is assumed to be a cellular mechanism of learning and memory. Our previous experiments showed that with the single pulses evoking 80% of the maximal population spike (PS) amplitude, nicotine (10 μmol/L) induced LTP-like response in the hippocampal CA1 region. In the present study, the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subtypes and relevant neurotransmitter releases involved in LTP-like response induced by nicotine were investigated by extracellularly recording the PS in the pyramidal cell layer in the hippocampal CA1 region in vitro. LTP-like response induced by nicotine was blocked by mecamylamine (1 μmol/L) or κ-bungarotoxin (0.1 μmol/L), but not by dihydro-β-erythtroidine (DHβE, 10 μmol/L). Moreover, it was inhibited by propranolol (10 μmol/L), but not by phentolamine (10 μmol/L) or atropine (10 μmol/L). The results suggest that noradrenaline release secondary to the activation of κ-bungarotoxin-sensitive nAChRs participates in LTP-like response induced by nicotine in the hippocampal CA1 region.
Animals ; Bungarotoxins ; CA1 Region, Hippocampal ; physiology ; Long-Term Potentiation ; drug effects ; Nicotine ; pharmacology ; Norepinephrine ; secretion ; Receptors, Nicotinic ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo observe the effects of nicotine on endogenous carbon monoxide (CO) concentration and nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity in the corpus cavernosum of adult male rats, and explore the possible mechanism of cigarette smoking affecting erectile dysfunction.

METHODSForty adult male rats were equally divided into three treatment groups to receive subcutaneous injection of nicotine at 0.5 mg/kg pre d for 1, 2 and 3 months, and a control group to receive saline only. After treatment, the corpus cavernosum was harvested for detection of CO concentration by modified two-wavelength spectrophotometry and NOS activity by improved Griess measurement.

RESULTSCO concentration and NOS activity were decreased by 9.05 and 13.37%, respectively, after 1 month of nicotine injection (P < 0.01), 16.47 and 22.5% after 2 months (P < 0.01), and 22.99 and 31.74% after 3 months (P < 0.01), as compared with (13.664 +/- 0.404) umol/mg prot and (9.721 +/- 0.470) U/mg prot in the control group.

CONCLUSIONNicotine can reduce endogenous CO concentration and NOS activity in the corpus cavernosum of adult male rats, which suggests the involvement of endogenous CO and NOS in the pathophysiological process of smoking-induced erectile dysfunction .

Animals ; Carbon Monoxide ; metabolism ; Erectile Dysfunction ; chemically induced ; Male ; Nicotine ; toxicity ; Nitric Oxide Synthase ; metabolism ; Penis ; metabolism ; Rats ; Smoking ; adverse effects