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Cotinine
has become a popular biomarker for nicotine exposure because it is a primary metabolite of
nicotine, and it has a much longer half-life than nicotine. It is also very stable during
storage. However, wide variation in nicotine metabolism among individuals means that
cotinine levels can vary considerably, even between women smoking the same number of
cigarettes per day. Cotinine has been used widely in research studies as a measure of
tobacco exposure. Often, however, the limitations of cotinine have gone unrecognized. |
