Real-Time Measurement and Uptake of Carcinogens by Menthol Cigarette Smokers

描述(申请人提供)：薄荷醇是制造商积极销售的唯一香烟添加剂，特别受到年轻人和少数族裔的青睐。越来越多的证据表明，薄荷醇香烟是年轻人的起始产品，阻碍戒烟，增加戒烟后的复发率，并通过不断向有色人种社区进行有针对性的营销破坏社会正义。很难将薄荷醇香烟的使用与烟草相关疾病的风险增加联系起来。一般来说，试图建立这种联系的流行病学研究一直没有定论，而基于实验室的研究一直受到阻碍，因为无法让确定的薄荷醇吸烟者或非薄荷醇吸烟者在必要的较长时间内使用相反的香烟风格，以比较经典的毒性指标，结果喜忧参半。造成这种情况的一个主要原因可能是这些检测中使用的商业香烟。由于香烟是经过高度加工的，除了薄荷醇水平外，薄荷醇香烟和非薄荷醇香烟之间可能还有许多不同之处。研究人员之前的工作已经在薄荷醇和非薄荷醇香烟中发现了一些有趣的差异，但尚不清楚这些差异是薄荷醇单独作用的结果，还是商业香烟特性的许多其他可能的差异所致。为了充分研究香烟薄荷醇的影响，我们需要测试只有薄荷醇含量不同的香烟。这项研究的具体目的是确定吸烟的急性影响，除薄荷醇水平外，吸烟的香烟与吸烟相同。总的目标是建立有效的检测方法，而不需要长时间的暴露和遵守长期的方案。因此，我们将对一组除了薄荷醇水平不同之外相同的香烟进行表征。这些香烟是一种商用的非薄荷醇香烟，在低水平和高水平上都含有薄荷醇，还有骆驼粉碎香烟，这是一种非薄荷醇香烟，在滤嘴中有一个小薄荷醇颗粒，当被压碎时，薄荷醇会释放到滤嘴中。在香烟的化学特征之后，将通过受试者内设计的实时人体毒性测量，以评估人类对选定的与吸烟相关的毒素/致癌物的暴露。最后，为了产生特定受试者的烟雾排放并估计与吸烟相关的毒素/致癌物的摄取量，将对吸烟机器进行编程，以吸烟测试香烟，并比较每种测试香烟的烟雾排放。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Menthol, the only cigarette additive that is actively marketed by manufacturers, is particularly favored by youth and ethnic/racial minorities. There is growing evidence that menthol cigarettes are starter products for youth, impede cessation, increase relapse following cessation and undermine social justice by the incessant targeted marketing of these products to communities of color. Tying menthol cigarette use to increased risk of tobacco-related diseases has been difficult. Generally, epidemiologic studies that have been used to try to make that connection have been inconclusive, whereas laboratory-based studies have been hampered by the inability to get established menthol or non-menthol smokers to use the opposite cigarette style for the extended periods necessary to compare classic measures of toxicity, and results obtained have been mixed. A major reason for this may lie with the commercial cigarettes that were used in these tests. Because cigarettes are so highly engineered, there are likely many differences between menthol and non-menthol cigarettes other than menthol levels. The investigators' previous work has resulted in some intriguing contrasts in menthol and non-menthol cigarettes, but it cannot be known if the differences were the result of the effects of mentholation alone, or the many other possible differences in the properties of commercial cigarettes. To adequately study the effect of mentholation of cigarettes, we need to test cigarettes that differ only in menthol content. The specific aims of this research are to determine the acute effects of smoking cigarettes that are equivalent except for levels of menthol. The over-all goal is to establish methods for testing which are valid without requiring prolonged periods of exposure and compliance with long-duration protocols. We will therefore characterize a set of cigarettes that are the same except for variation in menthol levels. The cigarettes are a commercial non-menthol cigarette that is mentholated at a low level and a high level, and Camel Crush, a non-menthol cigarette with a small menthol pellet in the filter which, when crushed, releases menthol into the filter. Chemical characterization of the cigarettes will be followed by real-time human toxicity measurements in a within-subjects design, to assess human exposure to select smoke-related toxins/carcinogens. Finally, to generate subject-specific smoke emissions and estimate uptake of smoke- related toxins/carcinogens, a smoking machine will be programmed to smoke the test cigarettes, and smoke emissions of each of the test cigarettes will be compared.