cotinine

Cotinine is an alkaloid found in tobacco and the primary metabolite of nicotine, commonly used as a biomarker for tobacco smoke exposure. It acts pharmacologically by binding to and modulating neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) with much lower potency than nicotine. Cotinine may function as a positive allosteric modulator of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, facilitating endogenous neurotransmission without direct stimulation. It has demonstrated nootropic, antidepressant, anxiolytic, antipsychotic-like effects and potential benefits in animal models of depression, PTSD, schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease, and Parkinson's disease. Cotinine fumarate was developed as an antidepressant under the brand name Scotine but was never marketed. Its half-life is approximately 20 hours in vivo making it useful for detecting tobacco exposure over several days.[1][4]

Brand names

Scotine

Other names

cotininumscotine(S)-1-methyl-5-pyridin-3-ylpyrrolidin-2-one(-)-1-methyl-5-(3-pyridyl)-2-pyrrolidinone