Tobacco Research Could Lead to Nicotine Reparations

Targacept, a company investigating drugs based on nicotine research got $35 million from GlaxoSmithKline today to develop, discover, and market new drugs. If Targacept researchers meet certain goals, they'll get even more money -- up to $1.5 billion (that's if everything goes swimmingly).

Neuronal niconitic receptor research is pretty hot right now, as Wired News reported in June. The irony is that much of the published literature was generated by tobacco companies. In face, Targacept's CEO is a former R.J. Reynolds employee. From the WN article:

DeBethizy worked for R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company for 15 years -- he was one of the first to publicly declare that tobacco is addictive -- before he spun Targacept off as a separate company. RJR retains a 4
percent share of the Winston Salem biotech, which has one mission: to develop drugs that target the so-called "nicotinic receptors" in the human central-nervous system.

AstraZeneca also recently penned a $10 million deal with Targacept based on NNR research, Abbot has its own NNR research program, and last year Pfizer launched Chantix, an NNR smoking cessation drug.

Smoking addiction is, perhaps surprisingly, just one affliction these drugs might treat. Targacept is focusing on pain treatment, among other indications. Research also indicates NNRs might treat dementia, neurodegenerative diseases, psychotic disorders, depression and attention deficit.