London : The injection could make you hate the nicotine and help millions of smokers kick the habit

Vaccine could be used on children in order to prevent them from even starting to smoke

Scientists have discovered that a DNA injection could produce special antibodies that will make us hate nicotine, reports Dailymail. This way they will help a millions of passionate smokers be freed from the nicotine addiction. Only one  injection could give you a life-long guarantee that you will never want to taste nicotine again. The scientists suggest that the vaccine could be used on children in order to prevent them from even starting to smoke.

If it proved to be safe and effective, it could be even included in school vaccination calendars. Today vaccines for smoking are more important than tuberculosis ones, for example.

The vaccine is still in the process of tests and it was been only used on mice but the researches with people are about to start very soon – maybe around 2014. Because being on an early stage of development, the vaccine is not to be expected in the market for at least another 5 years. But the preliminary tests are very promising that the genetic vaccine will be a success.

The injection will contain specially “programmed” genes that will make antibodies which will neutralize the nicotine before it reaches the brain. This way the nicotine won’t be able to trigger the pleasurable feelings that are responsible for the nicotine addiction. The liver will produce these special antibodies all the time, ensuring that there will be always enough quantity of them to fight with nicotine, if it suddenly enters the body.

The vaccine is developed at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. The lead researcher Dr Ronald Crystal said: “This novel vaccine may offer a much-needed solution.”