Evaluation of Moclobemide, a Reversible MAO-A Inhibitor, as an Adjunct to Nicotine Replacement Therapy in Female Smokers

The proposed study will assess the efficacy of moclobemide, a selective, reversible MAO-A inhibitor, in facilitating smoking cessation in treatment-seeking female smokers. This rationale is based on several findings from previous work: 1) cigarette smoke contains constituents that inhibit both forms of the enzyme monoamine oxidase (MAO-A and MAO-B); 2) that severity of depression symptoms after smoking abstinence is correlated with the level of MAO-A inhibition previously obtained from smoking; 3) moclobemide, an MAO-A inhibitor was found efficacious in a smoking cessation treatment trial (Berlin et al., 1995); and 4) women show a greater association between smoking and depression than men and women smokers in our previous trials report smoking to alleviate symptoms of depression to a greater extent than men.