Nicotine receptors regulate synaptic transmission in auditory cortex

 

Nicotine binds to receptors that normally mediate the effects of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine.  The so-called nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) are found throughout the brain, including in the auditory system at every level from the cochlea to the cortex.  Nicotine delivered systemically to an animal (including humans) enhances acoustic-evoked responses in the cortex, and much of this effect depends on nAChRs that regulate synaptic transmission in the cortex or in the auditory thalamocortical pathway.  The effects of nicotine might be exploited for therapeutic purposes, for example, to enhance cortical responses to cochlear implants.