A researcher at UCF's College of Medicine is examining how nicotine affects brain cells, work that could inform treatments for addiction. Cali Calarco, an assistant professor in the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, is leading the effort through a grant of more than $943,000 from the National Institutes of Health that runs nearly five years. Her lab is studying how neurons and their molecules change when exposed to nicotine and other drugs, with the aim of understanding how microscopic changes in the brain influence behavioral decisions, including those tied to addiction.
The research centers on the nucleus accumbens, a brain region involved in reward, learning and behavior, and on how individual types of brain cells respond to nicotine and other drugs. Calarco's lab is particularly interested in mitochondria, the structures that produce the energy cells need. Recent studies suggest mitochondria may also play a role in drug-seeking behavior, and Calarco notes they influence how neurons communicate and are involved in gene transcription, translation and steroid hormone production.
Calarco began the project in 2024 as a postdoctoral scholar at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, and joined UCF in January 2026. She earned a doctorate in neuroscience from Yale University. Her work is supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse under award number K01DA061048, and the content is solely the responsibility of the authors. She points to a shifting nicotine market, with e-cigarettes and nicotine pouches now available as cigarette smoking has declined. According to FDA and CDC data from the 2025 National Youth Tobacco Survey, nicotine pouch use nearly quadrupled among U.S. youth and young adults between 2022 and 2025. While her research focuses on nicotine, Calarco says the findings could have implications for other substances and even social media addiction.
Press release issued by UCF Today:
https://www.ucf.edu/news/ucf-researcher-investigates-mechanisms-of-nicotine-addiction/
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