[yupsnick (OP)]

If a large dose of nicotine taken all at once could be fatal, then why is there not more ardent warning messages on the labels of what they call ejuice, the nicotine concoctions used in vaping devices. I always buy the ejuices with the maximum strength of nicotine. I have one here that is 30ml total and it says it has 24mg nicotine, although that might be per ml; and in any case I've heard it called 2.4% nicotine strength. You figure it exactly as I'm unsure. I know that a 30ml bottle of ejuice can produce thousands of potent puffs that the user senses as being as strong as smoking a real cigarette. The label does say "keep away from children" and "do not drink" but maybe there ought to be a skull and crossbones and a full poison advisory with recommendations what to do "if ingested". From what was said in this thread I have to believe that this small bottle of ejuice could kill a few people. And it's available in larger bottles too. Any thoughts?

[chiralSPO]

I moved this to a new thread because it is different enough from the thread it was posted in.

Yes, nicotine is quite toxic. Gram for gram it is about the same as potassium cyanide (which definitely has the skull and crossbones label!) We don't have exact numbers, because there are some ethical problems associated with testing for LD50 values on humans, but based on data from animal toxicity studies and accidental poisonings, nicotine is definitely on the potent end of the toxic spectrum.

You should be very careful with that high-concentration liquid. Not only is it potentially fatal if you swallow (a lot of )it, nicotine can also be absorbed through the skin fairly easily (hence the nicotine patch), so if you spill a substantial amount of the fluid on yourself, you should wash it off immediately, and remove any soiled clothing immediately.

[puppypower]

Nicotine is sort of like Botox, where a potentially fatal substance, when used is small quantities, can have a somewhat useful affect. Nicotine can be very deadly, but in smaller doses can act as a stimulant and relaxant at the same time, which is unique.

If I am not mistaken, nicotine amide is a B vitamin.

[chiralSPO]

Nictoinic acid and nicotinamide are both B vitamins. Nicotine is structurally similar to both of these compounds, but because it lacks the carbon-oxygen double bond, it has very different properties. Under biological conditions, the nitrogen of the 5-membered ring is protonated, causing the whole molecule to take on a +1 charge, while nictoinic acid and nicotinamide are neutral under biological conditions. (see attached pdf for structures)

In it's charged form, nicotine binds to and activates (agonist) some types of acetylcholine receptors (nicotinic acetylcholine receptors). Acetylcholine itself has a charge of +1. This is what makes nicotine toxic (similar to nerve gas, which also acts on acetyl choline pathways--although nicotine does this by impersonating acetylcholine, and nerve gas does this by deactivating the enzymes that break acetylcholine down after it has been released).