AT THIS TIME SMOKE SIGNATURE IS ONLY AVAILABLE FOR CLINICAL RESEARCH WITH AN IRB
The IntelliQuit Nicotine Test measures the nicotine you consumed today and yesterday. But every day, day after day, year after year, the average smoker consumes between 20 and 30 micrograms of toxic polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are immediately absorbed into the blood stream. The toxic effects of smoking remain in DNA for months – or even longer. As the patient stops smoking, gene modification returns to normal. When white blood cells encounter PAHs, they turn on key enzymes. Smoke Signature® measures methylation at cg05575921 of the AHRR gene-the key site controlling these enzymatic cascades. The more someone smokes, the more this site is demethylated. Cigarette consumption is precisely determined by using digital PCR technology, using this information to accurately determine the exact numbers of cigarettes consumed. Requiring only a single drop of blood or salvia samples, Smoke Signature offers a quick, easy-to-perform assessment that precisely quantifies consumption for a period of 60 days or longer by measuring the precise level of DNA methylation and consequently how much the patient smokes. Fortunately, DNA methylation reverses when a smoker quits.