{"id":4994,"date":"2023-02-13T18:00:11","date_gmt":"2023-02-14T02:00:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/dna-damage-levels-similar-in-vapers-and-smokers-study-finds\/"},"modified":"2023-11-19T12:55:57","modified_gmt":"2023-11-19T20:55:57","slug":"dna-damage-levels-similar-in-vapers-and-smokers-study-finds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/dna-damage-levels-similar-in-vapers-and-smokers-study-finds\/","title":{"rendered":"DNA damage levels similar in vapers and smokers, study finds"},"content":{"rendered":"\n \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
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DNA damage levels similar in vapers and smokers, study finds<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n \n \n
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Among never smokers who vaped exclusively, the frequency of vaping and the use of certain popular devices and flavors were associated with the highest levels of DNA damage, according to new research from the Keck School of Medicine of USC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n \n

\n Zara Abrams<\/span>\n \n February 13, 2023<\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n \n
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E-cigarettes\u2014used regularly by more than 10%<\/a> of U.S. teens and more than 3% of adults<\/a>\u2014were once pitched as a healthy alternative to tobacco cigarettes. But research increasingly links the use of e-cigarettes, or vaping, to many of the same life-threatening diseases that plague smokers.<\/p>\n

In a breakthrough study, a group of researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC analyzed epithelial cells taken from the mouths of vapers, smokers, and people who had never vaped or smoked. They found that vapers and smokers had similar levels of DNA damage\u2014more than twice the amount found in non-users. DNA damage was higher among those who vaped or smoked more frequently. It was also higher in vapers who used vape pods and mods, as well as sweet-, fruit- or mint-flavored vapes.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor the first time, we showed that the more vapers used e-cigarettes, and the longer they used them, the more DNA damage occurred in their oral cells,\u201d said Ahmad Besaratinia, PhD, MPH<\/a>, professor of research population and public health sciences at the Keck School of Medicine and the study\u2019s senior author.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe same pattern held up in smokers.\u201d<\/p>\n

DNA damage to oral epithelial cells, which line the mouth, is an early change that is associated with an increased risk for many types of chronic disease, including cancer and inflammatory diseases.<\/p>\n

The research, just published in the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research<\/a>, <\/em>is the first to clearly distinguish between the DNA damage that occurs in exclusive vapers versus smokers and to provide details about the risks vapers face based on how often they vape and what devices and flavors they use. Vapers are difficult to study because they typically have a history of cigarette smoking or are dual users, who both vape and smoke tobacco cigarettes.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe designed our study to tease out the effects of vaping in e-cigarette users who were neither cigarette smokers nor dual users at any point in their lives,\u201d said Besaratinia.<\/p>\n

The new study builds on earlier research from Besaratinia and his team, which showed that vaping is linked to alterations in\u00a0gene expression<\/a>,\u00a0epigenetic changes<\/a>\u00a0and other biological changes<\/a>\u00a0that are implicated in disease development.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe devices and flavors that are most popular and highly consumed by youth vapers, as well as adults, are the ones that are associated with the most DNA damage,\u201d Besaratinia said. \u201cClearly these results have significant implications, both for public health and regulatory agencies.\u201d<\/p>\n

More use, more damage<\/strong><\/p>\n

The researchers recruited 72 healthy adults and split them into three groups, matched for age, race and gender: current vapers (who had never smoked), current smokers (who had never vaped) and people with no history of smoking or vaping. They verified the history of each participant using detailed questionnaires, interviews and biochemical tests to ensure that any observed effects could be directly linked to either vaping or smoking.<\/p>\n

Besaratinia and his team also collected data on how often, and for how long, participants had smoked or vaped, and in the case of vaping, what devices and flavors they used. Then, they collected a sample of epithelial cells from each participant\u2019s mouth and tested for damage to specific genes known to indicate assault to the genome.<\/p>\n

The tests showed similar levels of DNA damage between vapers and smokers: 2.6 times and 2.2 times that of non-users, respectively. In terms of devices, vapers who used pods had the highest levels of DNA damage, followed by those who used mods. In terms of flavors, sweet-flavored vapes were linked to the highest levels of DNA damage, followed by mint\/menthol- and fruit-flavored vapes.<\/p>\n

Popular\u2014but harmful<\/strong><\/p>\n

The findings are highly relevant for public health agencies and regulators who aim to keep dangerous products away from vulnerable groups, including children and adolescents, Besaratinia said. The most popular products, including flavored vapes\u2014which are used by about 85% of teens who vape<\/a>\u2014also appear to be the most harmful, in terms of producing DNA damage.<\/p>\n

The team\u2019s next task is to replicate the findings in a larger group of participants. They also plan to study other biological effects resulting from DNA damage that are even more closely related to the onset of chronic disease.<\/p>\n

About this study<\/strong><\/p>\n

In addition to Besaratinia, the study\u2019s other authors are Stella Tommasi and Hannah Blumenfeld of the Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Keck School of Medicine of USC.<\/p>\n

This work was supported by the National Cancer Institute [1R21CA268197]; the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research [1R01DE026043]; and the University of California Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program [T31IR1839, T32IR5144].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":166,"featured_media":4995,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[81,169,20],"class_list":["post-4994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-release","tag-department-of-population-and-public-health-sciences","tag-latest","tag-research"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nDNA damage levels similar in vapers and smokers, study 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