Researchers find tiny genetic change keeps nicotine from binding to muscle cells
Monday, March 23, 2009 - 15:29
in Biology & Nature
A tiny genetic mutation is the key to understanding why nicotine--which binds to brain receptors with such addictive potency--is virtually powerless in muscle cells that are studded with the same type of receptor. That's according to California Institute of Technology (Caltech) researchers, who report their findings in the March 26 issue of the journal Nature.