Comparing the cancer potencies of emissions from vapourised nicotine products including e-cigarettes with those of tobacco smoke.

BACKGROUND: Quantifying relative harm caused by inhaling the aerosol emissions of vapourised nicotine products compared with smoking combustible tobacco is an important issue for public health. METHODS: The cancer potencies of various nicotine-delivering aerosols are modelled using published chemical analyses of emissions and their associated inhalation unit risks. Potencies are compared using a conversion procedure for expressing smoke and e-cigarette vapours in common units. Lifetime cancer risks are calculated from potencies using daily consumption estimates. RESULTS: The aerosols form a spectrum of cancer potencies spanning five orders of magnitude from uncontaminated air to tobacco smoke. E-cigarette emissions span most of this range with the preponderance of products having potencies<1% of tobacco smoke and falling within two orders of magnitude of a medicinal nicotine inhaler; however, a small minority have much higher potencies. These high-risk results tend to be associated with high levels of carbonyls generated when excessive power is delivered to the atomiser coil. Samples of a prototype heat-not-burn device have lower cancer potencies than tobacco smoke by at least one order of magnitude, but higher potencies than most e-cigarettes. Mean lifetime risks decline in the sequence: combustible cigarettes >> heat-not-burn >> e-cigarettes (normal power)≥nicotine inhaler. CONCLUSIONS: Optimal combinations of device settings, liquid formulation and vaping behaviour normally result in e-cigarette emissions with much less carcinogenic potency than tobacco smoke, notwithstanding there are circumstances in which the cancer risks of e-cigarette emissions can escalate, sometimes substantially. These circumstances are usually avoidable when the causes are known.

Controls on the valence species of arsenic in tobacco smoke: XANES investigation with implications for health and regulation.

Arsenic (As) is one of four metals/metalloids in tobacco being considered for regulation. In vitro toxicological response to As varies substantially, determined primarily by valence and compound speciation, and inorganic arsenite (As(III)) compounds are the most toxic to humans. This study uses X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES) to determine valence states of As from the tobacco plant to the crucial combustion stage that creates respirable smoke. Samples studied include cultivated plants (some burdened with additional As), reference standards, and commercial products, along with smoke condensate and ash from these samples. The relative contributions of As(III) and As(V) to the XANES spectra are analyzed, and a consistent pattern of redox changes emerges. Tobacco leaf and manufactured products tend to be dominated by As(V) whereas combustion produces respirable smoke invariably in As(III) form and ash invariably as As(V). The valence state of precursor tobacco is not a controlling factor because all the As mobilized in smoke is reduced during combustion. This study concludes that tobacco combustion exposes smokers to potentially the most toxic forms of arsenic, and this exposure is magnified in regions where arsenic is present in tobacco crops at relatively high concentrations.

Scalable Architecture for Federated Translational Inquiries Network (SAFTINet) Technology Infrastructure for a Distributed Data Network.

INTRODUCTION: Distributed Data Networks (DDNs) offer infrastructure solutions for sharing electronic health data from across disparate data sources to support comparative effectiveness research. Data sharing mechanisms must address technical and governance concerns stemming from network security and data disclosure laws and best practices, such as HIPAA. METHODS: The Scalable Architecture for Federated Translational Inquiries Network (SAFTINet) deploys TRIAD grid technology, a common data model, detailed technical documentation, and custom software for data harmonization to facilitate data sharing in collaboration with stakeholders in the care of safety net populations. Data sharing partners host TRIAD grid nodes containing harmonized clinical data within their internal or hosted network environments. Authorized users can use a central web-based query system to request analytic data sets. DISCUSSION: SAFTINet DDN infrastructure achieved a number of data sharing objectives, including scalable and sustainable systems for ensuring harmonized data structures and terminologies and secure distributed queries. Initial implementation challenges were resolved through iterative discussions, development and implementation of technical documentation, governance, and technology solutions.

Environmental pollen trapped by tobacco leaf as indicators of the provenance of counterfeit cigarette products: a preliminary investigation and test of concept.

The global trade in counterfeit tobacco products is increasingly taking market share from legal brands in many parts of the developed world, with attendant adverse economic, health, criminal, and other societal impacts. Knowing the geographical source is central to developing new strategies for curbing this illicit trade, and here, the potential of environmental pollen extracted from manufactured cigarettes is examined. Two samples representing U.S. and Chinese brands were investigated for their pollen content. Results indicate that tobacco leaf very efficiently captures environmental pollen (about 1800 and 12,600 grains per cigarette, respectively) with no detectable self-contamination by the tobacco plant. In both cases, the flora is typical of open space environments, but pollen type counts indicate very different distributions of species. This preliminary investigation indicates that palynology has the potential to constrain geographical source(s) of tobacco, particularly if regionally localized species can be recognized among the pollen.