title: Sex differences in acute relief of abstinence-induced withdrawal and negative affect due to nicotine content in cigarettes.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Acute cigarette smoking may relieve withdrawal and negative affect due to tobacco abstinence to a greater extent in women versus men. Yet, the relative contribution of the cigarette's nicotine content to this sex difference is not clear.
  
  
  METHODS
  Non-quitting dependent adult smokers (N = 44; 21 males, 23 females) participated in 2 virtually identical sessions, each after abstaining overnight (CO < 10 ppm) and differing only in the nicotine content of the designated cigarette. While blind to brand markings, they consumed a total of 24 puffs in controlled fashion for 2 hr in each session, either from a nicotine (Quest 1, 0.6 mg) or denicotinized (Quest 3, 0.05 mg) cigarette. Withdrawal symptoms were obtained before and after smoking, and negative affect was assessed after each period of cigarette exposure consisting of 6 puffs every 25 min.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Men and women did not differ in baseline withdrawal and negative affect due to overnight abstinence, but reductions in each symptom were significantly influenced by the interaction of sex × nicotine/denicotinized cigarette (both p < .05). In men, but not in women, each symptom was generally decreased more by the nicotine versus denicotinized cigarette, and the nicotine cigarette reduced each to a greater degree in men versus women.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Sex differences in relief of abstinence-induced withdrawal and negative affect due to the nicotine content in cigarettes are consistent with prior research indicating that nicotine per se, compared to non-nicotine smoke stimuli, is less rewarding in women versus men.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA perkinska@upmc.edu.
authors.forename: Kenneth A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Perkins
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.
authors.forename: Joshua L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Karelitz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000139:chemically induced*; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009538:Nicotine / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D013375:Substance Withdrawal Syndrome / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D009538:Nicotine