[Neuropharmacology of smoking: basic research opens new therapeutic possibilities]

Cigarette smoking and other forms of tobacco usage may be described as pharmacological nicotine-dependence. In the article are reviewed recent findings regarding nicotine dependence and its neuropharmacological basis. Nicotine acts via nicotinic receptors, and its dependence-promoting properties appear to be chiefly mediated by stimulation of noradrenaline and dopamine neurons in the brain, which may help to explain the excessive tobacco consumption associated with certain psychiatric disorders. Pharmacological treatment with nicotine substitution has been shown to improve prognosis significantly in smoking cessation programmes. New forms of non-addictive treatment are suggested by recent neuropharmacological findings.