A new study conducted on mice by researchers from the Penn State Department of Biobehavioral Health suggests that individuals in their late teens and early 20s might be more vulnerable to nicotine addiction compared to middle-aged adults. The researchers pointed out that the study's findings offer evidence that the impacts of drugs, encompassing both medications and misused substances, vary throughout a person's lifespan. This is something that clinicians and researchers should take into account when formulating and prescribing treatments.



Doctoral student Carlos Novoa, along with his mentor Thomas Gould, who holds the position of Jean Phillips Shibley Professor of Biobehavioral Health and heads the department, spearheaded the research. The scientists showed that nicotine was able to decrease the body temperature of young adult mice at a faster rate and had a more pronounced effect on reducing their movement compared to middle-aged mice. According to the research team, these results illustrate how the effects of nicotine change as people grow older.


“At times, people have the misconception that development only takes place until we reach a specific age, such as 18 or 25, and then it ceases,” Gould remarked. “However, human development and change persist throughout one's entire life, and this influences how our bodies react to medications and other chemicals, including nicotine. This research contributes one element to the complex picture of all the factors, such as age, biological sex, genetics, and numerous others, that are necessary for creating effective medical treatments and policies applicable to everyone.”


The outcomes of this study were published in the journal Behavioral Pharmacology.