| The primary study objective is to demonstrate the efficacy of Dianicline 40 mg bid versus placebo as an aid to smoking cessation in cigarette smokers, after seven weeks of treatment. The secondary objectives are to assess: 1) nicotine craving with the Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU-brief scale), 2) nicotine withdrawal symptoms with the Hughes Hatsukami Minnesota Withdrawal Scale (MNWS) during the first 3 weeks of treatment, 3) weekly point prevalence rate of abstinence during the treatment period, (i.e. segment B), 4) the number of smoke-free days, average number of cigarettes smoked during segment B, 5) the clinical and biological safety and tolerability of Dianicline during segment B, and the first week of segment C, and 6) the abstinence rate after a 19-week follow-up post-treatment period at six months from the Target Quit Date (TQD). |