Read the following passage and answer the question that follow :
The data below shows the concentration of nicotine smoked by a smoker taking 10 puffs/minute.
[Graph: "Smoking Cigarette", concentration of nicotine in blood (mg/cm3) against time (minutes), 1 to 15. The line rises steadily from about 0 at 1 minute to a peak of 45 at 10 minutes, falls sharply to 20 at 11 minutes, then declines slowly to about 10 at 15 minutes.]
(c) To which class of compounds does nicotine belong ? Name one other drug from the same class.
Show Hint
Nicotine is an alkaloid, like cocaine or morphine.
Step 1: Class of nicotine:
Nicotine is obtained from the tobacco plant (Nicotiana tabacum).
It is a nitrogen containing plant compound with a bitter taste and strong action on the body. Such compounds are called alkaloids.
So nicotine belongs to the class of alkaloids.
Step 2: Another alkaloid drug:
Other drugs of the same class are morphine (from the opium poppy), cocaine (from the coca plant) and caffeine.
Any one of these is correct. Cocaine is a good choice because it is a well known alkaloid and a stimulant, like nicotine.
Final Answer:
Nicotine is an alkaloid. Another alkaloid drug is cocaine (or morphine, or caffeine).
