Nicotine has undergone an image overhaul, at least biomedically. In the past few years researchers have found that the substance can alleviate symptoms of ailments such as Alzheimer's disease and ulcerative colitis. Just how nicotine battles these foes, however, has remained unclear. Now, by studying sepsis, Luis Ulloa of North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, N.Y., has evidence elucidating nicotine's biochemical pathways that could lead to more potent anti-inflammatory drugs.