BIRC5 and non-small cell lung carcinoma: Another study by Piyali Dasgupta et al. reported that nicotine inhibits apoptosis induced by the chemotherapeutic drugs gemcitabine, cisplatin, and taxol by upregulating XIAP (X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein) and survivin; they further inferred that the induction of survivin protein in non-small-cell lung cancer cells was through the Akt pathway [19].