Summary
background Smokers vary in their genetic susceptibility to become addicted to smoking and probably also in their reaction to smoking cessation pharmacotherapies.
aim To provide an overview of the developments on the pharmacogenetics of the treatment of tobacco addiction.
method Review article describing the biological processes associated with tobacco addiction, and the influence of genetic variants on smoking behavior and the efficacy of smoking cessation therapies.
results Several (combinations of) genetic variants in smoking-related genes influence nicotine dependence. Moreover, several genetic variants in smoking- and treatment-related genes seem to influence the efficacy of smoking cessation therapies which are distinctive for the different forms of pharmacotherapy, especially when they have a different mechanism-of-action.
conclusion Much progress has been made in unraveling the (pharmaco)genetics of tobacco addiction, but much still remains to be done before genetically tailored smoking cessation therapy can be implemented in clinical practice.