Biology of Humans 6th Edition by Judith Goodenough,Betty McGuire

Exercise 1

E-cigarettes are becoming increasingly popular in the United States, including among children and teens. We have seen that the cells of the linings of the air tubules are the first cells exposed to environmental substances. They protect us against harmful substances we may inhale. For this reason, researchers wanted to determine the effect of vapor from the liquid in e-cigarettes on cells of the air tubule lining of young people. Using tissue cultures from deceased children who had donated their bodies to research, they exposed epithelial cells from air tubules to vapors from e-cigarettes. After 10 minutes of exposure to the vapors, the cells were damaged and were more susceptible to rhinoviruses, which cause the common cold. The damage occurred whether or not the liquid contained nicotine. The authors concluded: "This is the first study to demonstrate the adverse effects of e-cigarettes on primary airway epithelial functions from young people. Our data suggest that even nicotine-free e-liquid promotes pro-inflammatory response and HRV infection. Moreover, both e-liquid without nicotine and with nicotine inhibits lung innate immunity (e.g., SPLUNC1) that is involved in lung defense against HRV [human rhinovirus] infection." You can read the entire study at: Q. Wu et al., "Electronic cigarette liquid increases inflammation and virus infection in primary human airway epithelial cells," PLoS ONE 9(9) [2014]: e108342. doi:10.1371/ journal.pone.0108342
Use reliable sources to investigate the evidence for and against adverse health effects of e-cigarettes.