Nicotinic Receptors in our Bodies: Is Smoking Good or Bad?
Many of the older foster kids ask about smoking and vaping. I share that I don’t like either for health, but if there is a choice, the most organic cigarettes, like PURE or Herbal cigarettes, would be better choices. The teens tell me that people who smoke do not get COVID, which seems unrelated, except NAD and NAD⁺, which is nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, a coenzyme present in all living cells. Hence, these play a vital role in many biological processes, especially metabolism. The nicotinic receptors named by the body’s reaction to nicotine, is a an herb and a nightshade.
My grandfather smoked tobacco from age 12 to 90. My great-grandmother dipped tobacco in her mouth until she was old. Notably, the ingredients combined in most tobacco products today, called pyrazines, are not the same as the past 90 years due to additives found in cigarettes and vapes. Pyrazines are chemicals used to boost the flavor and appeal of cigarettes and e-cigarettes. Evidence shows that pyrazines might increase the addictive potential of these products by working with nicotine to strengthen its effects. (El-Hage R. et al., 2018).
Seeking Truth
This article is my journey to understand, and although a bit technical, it is a breakdown of a topic that holds merit but people seem to have a hard time looking at the science! Plus, as a curious clinical nutritionist, I want to understand ingredients and find evidence on smoking so that my answers are not biased but have some research behind them. The most interesting study found is:
Albuquerque, E. X., Pereira, E. F., Alkondon, M., & Rogers, S. W. (2009). Mammalian nicotinic acetylcholine receptors: from structure to function. Physiological reviews, 89(1), 73–120. https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00015.2008
The overarching message in the extensive 80-page Review published in Physiological Reviews (2009) by Albuquerque and colleagues, concerns nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in our bodies. They explain their structure, function, and significance in human health and disease. They also explore how these receptors work throughout the body and their connection to various neurological conditions. In my research, I will refer to these nAChRs as nicotinic receptors, summarize and simplify this detail with relevant and surprising data from scientific peer-reviewed articles. I will share the controversial relationship between nicotine exposure and the unexpected potential of protective effects on the human body.
Historical Context and Receptor Structure
Delving into the origins of our knowledge of receptors in biology, John Langley is credited with the innovative investigations that reveal nicotine’s effects in the early 1900s.These early studies lay the groundwork for understanding how signals are transmitted between cells. By the late 1980s, functional and genetic studies confirmed the existence of these nicotinic receptors in the mammalian brain (emotional brain with a limbic system), revealing their importance in various neurological processes and conditions.
Channel Structure: Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors comprise five protein subunits arranged around a central pore. This pore forms an ion channel that opens when acetylcholine or other agonists (like nicotine) bind to the receptor.
Subunit Diversity: There are multiple subunit types (α, β, γ, δ, and ε) that can combine in different arrangements to form various nicotinic receptor subtypes. This diversity explains these receptors’ wide range of functions throughout the body.
Distribution: While initially studied in muscle tissue, nicotinic receptors are now known to be widely distributed throughout the central and peripheral nervous systems, as well as in non-neuronal tissues like immune cells, skin, and lung tissue.
Diversity
This structural and functional diversity explains why nicotinic receptors are involved in many physiological processes and implicated in numerous diseases and conditions. The specific arrangement of subunits determines the receptor’s properties, including its sensitivity to different ligand-gated channels, ion conductance, and desensitization characteristics. The ligand-gated or agonist-gated channels are a group of ion channels that open or close in response to binding with a chemical.
What does this mean? I have more questions. What are these channels? Where do they come from? I found a 2009 textbook, Pharmacology, and in Table 16.2, Bachmann & William show the following basic chart of “Classification of Ligand-Gated Ion Channels, their inhibitors and activators,” which I’m showing an excerpt of nAChRs (nicotinic receptors).
|
Superfamilies |
Major Family Members |
Inhibitors (Antagonists) |
Activators (Agonists) |
|
Cys-loop receptors |
nAChRs (nicotinic receptors) |
α-bungarotoxin, D-tubocurarin (curare) |
ACh, nicotine |
What are these Inhibitors?
The next question is: What are α-Bungarotoxin and D-tubocurarine (Curare) known inhibitors and what would be the reason to use this? I don’t see a lot of injuries or deaths from this venom or alkaloid. Despite this, the study notes these substances act as neuromuscular blocking agents, meaning they interfere with the signals that nerves send to muscles, leading to paralysis. (Kullmann et al., 2009; Curare | EBSCO, 2023; What Is Curare and What Does It Do?, 2025)
- α-Bungarotoxin is a neurotoxin derived from the venom of the Taiwanese banded krait snake. It binds competitively and irreversibly to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChR) at the neuromuscular junction, blocking acetylcholine (ACh) and causing a non-depolarizing block. How and Why do we know this?! Interestingly, Kullmann F. et al., (2009), provides this information which is published in the same year as the main study we are summarizing. The mechanism of this toxin leads to paralysis of striated muscles, which can result in respiratory failure and death if untreated. Although not used clinically due to its dangerous nature, α-Bungarotoxin is a valuable research tool in neuroscience for studying cholinergic receptors.
- D-tubocurarine, or curare, is an alkaloid from plants like the South American vine Chondrodendron tomentosum. It acts as a competitive antagonist at nAChR, blocking ACh and causing a reversible non-depolarizing muscle block. Effects include muscle relaxation for 20–30 minutes, extendable with lower doses. Historically significant as a muscle relaxant in surgery, D-tubocurarine is obsolete, and newer neuromuscular blockers exist with better safety and efficacy.
What is the Connection?
Interestingly, during the research, I found an interview online with Dr. Ardis, who recommended 7 mg of Rugby nicotine patches for 6 days to help repair long COVID. Apparently, he has found research of these inhibitors noted above existing in the either the disease or vaccine. Therefore he claims that placing this nicotine patch on your arm will saturate the nicotinic receptors and prevent the disease or inhibitors from activating.
Roles of Nicotinic Receptors in Health and Disease
The Review by Albuquerque and colleagues highlights the extensive involvement of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in various physiological functions and pathological conditions. These receptors play crucial roles in both the central and peripheral nervous systems, as well as in non-neuronal tissues throughout the body:
Neurological Diseases: Studies show nicotinic receptors are implicated in several major neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and schizophrenia. Alterations in receptor number, distribution, or function may contribute to the pathophysiology of these disorders.
Cognitive Function: These receptors involve various cognitive processes, including attention, learning, and memory, explaining why nicotine can temporarily enhance cognitive performance in some contexts.
Addiction: Nicotinic receptors mediate the addictive properties of nicotine and influence the reward pathways involved in other substance use disorders. Their activation can trigger dopamine release in the brain’s reward centers elevated by pyrazines.
Non-neuronal Functions: Beyond the nervous system, these receptors participate in immune regulation, cell proliferation, and other physiological processes in tissues throughout the body.
Nicotine Exposure and Potential Protective Effects
The relationship between nicotine exposure and potential protective effects on the human body is complex and somewhat controversial. Smoking tobacco is evidenced to be harmful, probably primarily due to thousands of toxic pyrazine compounds emitted in cigarette smoke. Albuquerque E. et al., 2009 state that isolated nicotine may benefit certain nicotinic receptor subtypes under specific circumstances.
Dr. Ardis’ source must have been the study I’ve been reading. When nicotine binds to nAChRs (nicotine receptors), it activates these receptors, mimicking the natural neurotransmitter acetylcholine.
Potential Neuroprotective Mechanisms
Anti-inflammatory Effects: Activating specific nicotine receptor subtypes (particularly α7) on immune cells can suppress inflammation, which may be beneficial in conditions with neuroinflammatory components like Alzheimer’s.
Neurotrophic Factor Release: Nicotine exposure can stimulate the release of neurotrophic factors that promote neuronal survival and growth, potentially offering protection against neurodegenerative processes.
Receptor Upregulation: Chronic nicotine exposure leads to an increase in specific nicotine receptor subtypes, which may compensate for receptor deficits observed in conditions like Alzheimer’s disease.
Important Caveats
Despite these potential mechanisms, I am not ready to recommend smoking. But I am cautiously okay with placing a nicotine patch on adults in a small amount of 3mg if I have symptoms, based on this study. Conversely, nightshades like eggplant, have the highest nicotine at 100mcg per gram whereas one cigarette has 10x that amount and a 3 mg patch may be cleaner but has 30x more.
I’ve found some relief by occasionally using nicotine patches—cutting the 14 mg into smaller pieces—especially in crowded spaces. But I can’t help but feel that if our nation stopped the widespread contamination of our food and environment, we wouldn’t need to rely on such extreme measures to regulate our bodies in the first place.
Similarly to processed foods, I also question if the additives are the problem and not the herb/plant tobacco, which may have protective value in specific cases. The potential benefits of nicotine are being explored through controlled delivery methods like patches or targeted medications that can activate particular receptor subtypes without the harmful effects of tobacco smoke.
Application and Caution
Furthermore, the effects of nicotine are highly dependent on dose, duration of exposure, age, and individual factors. Because of environmental factors and specific genetics, what might be protective in one context could be harmful in another. For example, this study suggests nicotine might have protective effects against Parkinson’s disease in adults. However, nicotine exposure during developmental adolescent years may have lasting negative consequences on brain development.
I thought it might be interesting to share this research since so many are smoking. For more food ideas read Healthy Family!
Mandy
References
El-Hage, R., El-Hellani, A., Salman, R., Talih, S., Shihadeh, A., & Saliba, N. A. (2018). Fate of pyrazines in the flavored liquids of e-cigarettes. Aerosol science and technology: the Journal of the American Association for Aerosol Research, 52(4), 377–384. https://doi.org/10.1080/02786826.2018.1433293
Albuquerque, E. X., Pereira, E. F., Alkondon, M., & Rogers, S. W. (2009). Mammalian nicotinic acetylcholine receptors: from structure to function. Physiological reviews, 89(1), 73–120. https://doi.org/10.1152/physrev.00015.2008
Bachmann, K., & William, M. H. (2009). Pharmacology. Elsevier. Chapter 16 https://doi.org/10.1016/c2009-0-01474-3
Kullmann, F. A., Chet de Groat, W., & Artim, D. E. (2009). 35 – Bungarotoxins. In J. Jankovic, A. Albanese, M. Z. Atassi, J. O. Dolly, M. Hallett & N. H. Mayer (Eds.), Botulinum Toxin (pp. 425–445). W.B. Saunders. https://10.1016/B978-1-4160-4928-9.00035-4
Curare | EBSCO. (2023). EBSCO Information Services, Inc. | Www.ebsco.com. https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/health-and-medicine/curare
What is curare, and what does it do? (2025). Drugs.com. https://www.drugs.com/medical-answers/what-is-curare-3561000/
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