CRoFT TCORS Project 3: Respiratory Health Effects of Flavors
Principal Investigator(s): Maciej Lukasz Goniewicz
Funding Mechanism: National Institutes of Health – TCORS Grant
ID number: 1 U54 CA228110-01
Award Date: 9/14/18
Institution: Roswell Park Cancer Institute
More information about the respiratory health hazards of the flavorings used in tobacco products would be useful. The goal of this Center for Research on Flavored Tobacco Products (CRoFT) project is to characterize the respiratory health effects -- including inflammation, biomarkers of exposure, and clinical markers with relevance to disease endpoints -- attributable to the use of flavored tobacco products. Two studies will evaluate daily ENDS users as they switch among various flavors. Study aims are: (1) to assess changes in respiratory symptoms and biomarker levels in ENDS users during spontaneous switching between flavors (Study 1); (2) to evaluate respiratory symptoms in ENDS users switching from flavors of potentially high toxicity to flavors of potentially low toxicity (Study 2); and (3) to characterize ENDS users’ preferences, selection, patterns of use and switching between various flavors (Studies 1&2). In Study 1, researchers will establish a cohort of 176 ENDS users (ages 18-54) to assess changes in respiratory symptoms during spontaneous switching among flavors over one year. In Study 2, researchers will conduct a randomized, parallel-group open-label trial to evaluate respiratory symptoms in 216 ENDS users (ages 18-54) switching from higher-toxicity to lower-toxicity flavors (as identified by Project 1). Endpoints will include clinically relevant biomarkers of inflammation and oxidative stress, changes in respiratory function, subjective respiratory symptoms and side-effects, and expression of immune and inflammatory response genes in nasal epithelial cells. Results may inform future regulatory activities related to flavors.
CRoFT TCORS: WNY Center for Research on Flavored Tobacco Products (CRoFT) Related Resources
- CRoFT TCORS: WNY Center for Research on Flavored Tobacco Products (CRoFT)
- CRoFT TCORS Project 1: In Vitro and In Vivo Assessment of Flavorant Toxicity
- CRoFT TCORS Project 2: Human Thresholds for Characterizing Flavors and Impact on Behavior
- CRoFT TCORS Project 4: Evaluating Effects of Packaging and Market Availability of Flavored Tobacco Products on Consumer Perception and Behavior
- The original scientific abstract and other project information can be found on the NIH website.