From the Center for Health Sciences, SRI International, Menlo Park, California; and Department of Psychiatry, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri
Authors disclosures of potential conflicts of interest are found at the end of this article.
Address reprint requests to Gary Swan, PhD, Center for Health Sciences, SRI International, 333 Ravenswood Ave., Menlo Park, CA 94025; and Christina N. Lessov-Schlaggar, PhD, Department of Psychiatry, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63110; e-mail: gary.swan{at}sri.com
Overview: This article presents a review of several components of nicotine addiction, including the epidemiology of smoking in the United States and around the world, the dopaminergic hypothesis underlying nicotine addiction, developmental pathways by which adolescents who are exposed to nicotine by way of tobacco products may become chronic smokers as adults, the results from recent genomic studies of nicotine dependence, and a discussion of progress (past and future) in the development of an understanding of the pharmacogenetics of nicotine dependence and its treatment.