Tobacco: relationship between reduced nicotine content and reinforcement in rats

This grant application is written in response to Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA): RFA-OD-15-006, Abuse liability associated with reduced nicotine content tobacco products. The objective of this FOA is to provide the FDA with information regarding the relationship between the nicotine content in tobacco and the addictive properties of cigarettes. Our studies will address the research priorities that are mandated by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act and are outlined in this FOA. In the FOA it is stated the research should focus on combusted tobacco products and investigators should use adolescent animal models of drug reinforcement. Therefore, our studies will determine the relationship between the nicotine content in tobacco and the reinforcing properties of cigarettes in adolescent rats. These studies will inform the FDA about the dose-effects of nicotine in tobacco on the addictive properties of cigarettes in adolescents.