Nicotine Withdrawal and Reward Processing: Connecting Neurobiology to Real-world Behavior

Study Overview
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Brief Summary
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This study is designed to find out how smoking affects the way the brain responds to pleasure and how this impacts smokers' behavior. Participants will complete three sessions. The first session will be a screening and training visit to determine final eligibility. Eligible participants will work with a researcher to develop brief scripts about times when they smoke and do other activities. Next, participants will attend two magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans - one after abstaining from smoking for 24 hours and the other after smoking as usual. After the second MRI, participants will answer questions on their phone every day for two weeks.

Official Title
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Nicotine Withdrawal and Reward Processing: Connecting Neurobiology to Real-world Behavior

Conditions
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Cigarette Smoking, Nicotine Withdrawal

Intervention / Treatment
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* Other: Smoking Abstinence
* Other: Ad Lib Smoking


Participation Criteria
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Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria: Generally healthy Right-handed Smoke >= 10 cigarettes per day Smoking regularly for >= 1 year Carbon Monoxide (CO) > 8 at screening (or urinary cotinine > 100) Own a compatible smartphone Able to read and understand English Able to identify at least 4 pleasurable activities they do not do concurrently with smoking or associate with smoking Exclusion Criteria: Regular use of roll your own cigarettes Planning to quit smoking within the next 60 days Current or planned smoking cessation treatment Regular use of smokeless tobacco or other nicotine products Expired CO > 80 parts per million Breath alcohol > .000 at screening (re-attempts are allowed) Positive toxicology screen for exclusionary drugs Use of exclusionary medications Significant medical problems Currently breastfeeding, pregnant, or planning to become pregnant Enrollment in another study utilizing Spectrum cigarettes within the last 3 months Irregular slee-wake cycles (e.g. swing-shift work, unusual sleep patterns)

Ages Eligible for Study
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Minimum Age: 21 Years
Maximum Age: 55 Years

Sexes Eligible for Study
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All

Accepts Healthy Volunteers
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Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Study Plan
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How is the study designed?
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Design Details

Primary Purpose: Basic Science
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention Model: Crossover Assignment
Interventional Model Description: Participants will abstain from smoking for 24 hours before one MRI scan and continue smoking as usual before the other.
Masking: Triple


Arms and Interventions

| Participant Group/Arm | Intervention/Treatment |
| --- | --- |
| Other: Smoking Abstinence<br>Participants will abstain from smoking for 24 hours before one MRI scan. Smoking abstinence will be confirmed using exhaled carbon monoxide breath testing | Other: Smoking Abstinence<br>* Participants will abstain from smoking for 24 hours.<br>|
| Other: Ad Lib Smoking<br>Participants will continue smoking as usual (i.e. ad lib) before one MRI scan and smoke one additional cigarette immediately prior to scanning. Continued smoking will be confirmed using exhaled carbon monoxide breath testing. | Other: Ad Lib Smoking<br>* Participants will continue smoking as usual (i.e. ad lib) and smoke one cigarette of their own brand immediately prior to scanning.<br>|

What is the study measuring?
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Primary Outcome Measures

| Outcome Measure | Measure Description | Time Frame |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Blood Oxygen Level Dependent (BOLD) Activation | BOLD activation in brain reward network regions | Approximately 1-3 weeks | 
| Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) Pleasure Ratings | Anticipated and actual pleasure ratings acquired each day during EMA portion of study. Individual items are based on the 12-item Tripartite Pleasure Inventory (TPI). Participants rate their anticipated pleasure for activities they expect to engage in each day using a 0 (No pleasure) to 4 (Extreme pleasure) scale in the morning. They will then rate their actual experienced pleasure for activities they actually did engage in the evening using the same scale. Scores are summed across items for a theoretical range of 0-48. | 2-6 weeks |