Nicotine May Lead to New Weight-Loss Drugs, Scientists Say

Smoking cigarettes, even with its health risks, has long been used as a way to shed pounds. Now scientists have discovered how the habit suppresses appetite, pointing the way for potential weight-loss drugs.

Nicotine, the addictive substance in cigarettes, quells appetite by latching to certain brain receptors that crank up the activity of a system of neurons influencing food desire, according to a study in the journal Science. Scientists identified this pathway as the hypothalamic melanocortin system.