It is not a big secret, that Big tobacco has been earning billions each year by keeping smokers loyal to their products, however smoking cessation products present a constantly growing threat for those profits.

Therapies created by pharmaceutical giants to assist smokers in giving up have had a relative success, due to a number of restrictions, side effects and low efficiency. However, Pharma tycoons don’t give up, but on the contrary, have been trying hard to create a miraculous cure which will overcome the addiction.

The newest attempt to crack down smokers’ nicotine addiction is launched by GlaxoSmithKline, which decided to team up with another pharmaceutical power Nabi Biopharmaceuticals. The new partners made a joint statement this week, declaring that they are going to join forces to develop a nicotine vaccine named NicVAX.

The vaccine is now in the first stage of the two-stage clinical testing. It makes the third stage in the development of the vaccine. Glaxo pays Nabi $40 million as an advance payment for an opportunity to become a patentee and could pay other $500 million if particular sales volumes are reached.

The vaccine is deemed to enhance the immune system reaction, making antibodies to form. This would restrict the movement of nicotine molecules halting their impact on the certain brain receptors, responsible for pleasure. In simple words, it would deprive smokers of the pleasure they are used to get from smoking.

Efficient nicotine vaccine potentially will have a huge market success as there all nearly 1.3 billion smokers across the world and a great part of them make numerous attempts to give up In conformity with Tobacco-Free Kids charity foundation only 4% - 7% of smokers can give up cold-turkey without help of special programs and drugs.

There are many means that can help smokers quit. Glaxo has its own replacement therapies that earned more than $380 million only in 2009. The UK pharmaceutical company sells Nicorette gum, Nicoderm CQ patches and Commit lozenges. The company also makes Zyban.

In July 2009, the US Food and Drug Administration obliged Zyban and Chantix, another smoking cessation drug made by Pfizer, to place black box warnings on its packs, after Chantix was confirmed to cause severe adverse effects, mainly psychological. Last year, surfaced internal documentation demonstrated that Chantix was directly related to severe mental disorders like suicidal behavior, depression and aggression. Within first 18 months after Chantix was introduced to the market the FDA received almost 1000 reports of aforementioned side effects all linked with Chantix intake. There were even 28 suicides among the reports.

The negative feedback for Chantix had its impact on Glaxo products as well, as the demand for the gums, patches and drugs fell significantly. Surveys showed that 70 percent of smokers thought that Glaxo products had the same side effects as Chantix. So, Glaxo initiated a massive ad campaign to boost sales. As regards the new vaccine, it is expected to be ready in four years, said the Nabi spokesman.