Nicotine impersonates the neurotransmitter acetylcholine (ACh), and by binding to receptors ACh would usually bind to, stimulates the production of dopamine, which is involved in your bodys reward pathways
Vorvick, MD, Clinical Professor, Department of Family Medicine, UW Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA
These data illustrate a specific challenge in studying the potential effects and harms of nicotine as much of the research into the potential harms of nicotine comes from studies in cells and animals where the doses used are often very high, leading to results that are controversial and difficult to extrapolate to humans
In some studies, with cells in the lab, nicotine has been shown to be a cancer promoter
Estimates in the past few years state that there are almost 7360 different compounds present, and it is likely that this number could still increase