The use of nicotine products is a major cause of death in the United States. About 62 million Americans age 12 and over are current cigarette smokers, making nicotine one of the most heavily used addictive drugs in the United States.

In conjunction with its July 27-28 conference, Addicted to Nicotine, a National Research Forum, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is sponsoring a media briefing to discuss the latest scientific advances regarding the behavioral and neurobiological bases of nicotine addiction, prevention of tobacco product use, and state-of-the-art treatment strategies. The briefing will be held on July 27, 1998, from 12:00pm to 1:00pm in room F1, Natcher Building, on the National Institutes of Health campus in Bethesda, MD.

The briefing will be hosted by NIDA Director Dr. Alan I. Leshner, one of the world's foremost authorities on drug addiction and its treatment and prevention. He will be joined by prominent researchers giving brief overviews related to their areas of expertise and followed by a question and answer period.

The tentative agenda is:

Dr. Alan Leshner, Overview;
Dr. Jack Henningfield, Pharmacology of nicotine and how people become addicted;
Nancy Kaufman, R.N., Risk factors for initiation of nicotine use;
Dr. Marina Picciotto and Dr. Rachel Tyndale, Genetic factors in nicotine addiction;
Dr. Maxine Stitzer, Treating nicotine addiction.

For additional information and to register, contact Mona Brown or Sheryl Massaro, NIDA Press Office, 301-443-6245.