Physiology & behaviorApr 25, 2024

Using GLP-1 receptors to help reduce nicotine addiction: Evidence from lab and human studies

GLP-1 Therapies Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Apr 5, 2026

Abstract

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists may reduce nicotine withdrawal-induced body weight gain.

Nicotine use disorder is a leading cause of preventable death in the U.S.
Current smoking cessation treatments are associated with high relapse rates and limited efficacy.
Body weight gain during nicotine withdrawal is a significant barrier to long-term abstinence.
GLP-1R agonists have been shown to lessen voluntary nicotine consumption and prevent excessive eating during withdrawal.
Emerging evidence indicates that GLP-1R agonists may also alleviate cognitive deficits and anxiety-related behaviors linked to smoking relapse.

Simplified

Nicotine use disorder (NUD) remains a leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. Unfortunately, current FDA-approved pharmacotherapies for smoking cessation have limited efficacy and are associated with high rates of relapse. One major barrier to long-term smoking abstinence is body weight gain during withdrawal. Nicotine withdrawal-induced body weight gain can also lead to development of chronic disease states like obesity and type II diabetes mellitus. Therefore, it is critical to identify novel pharmacotherapies for NUD that decrease relapse and nicotine withdrawal symptoms including body weight gain. Recent studies demonstrate that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) agonists attenuate voluntary nicotine taking and seeking and prevent withdrawal-induced hyperphagia and body weight gain. Emerging evidence also suggests that GLP-1R agonists improve cognitive deficits, as well as depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors, which contribute to smoking relapse during withdrawal. While further studies are necessary to fully characterize the effects of GLP-1R agonists on NUD and understand the mechanisms by which GLP-1R agonists decrease nicotine withdrawal-mediated behaviors, the current literature supports GLP-1R-based approaches to treating NUD.

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Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no competing financial interests.

PubMed

Using GLP-1 receptors to help reduce nicotine addiction: Evidence from lab and human studies

Abstract

Full Text

Funding

Competing interests

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Abstract

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