Semester

Summer

Date of Graduation

2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

MS

College

School of Medicine

Department

Exercise Physiology

Committee Chair

Paul Chantler

Committee Member

Mark Olfert

Committee Member

Paul Chantler

Committee Member

Kimberly Feaster

Abstract

Electronic cigarette (E-cig) use during pregnancy has grown in popularity due to the marketing of these devices as safer alternatives to traditional cigarettes. However, nicotine is a constituent in cigarettes that is cause for concern and is also present in a majority of E-cig devices. Little has been reported regarding the implications of E-cig use with nicotine during pregnancy on offspring health outcomes. This study tested the hypothesis that in-utero exposure to nicotine-containing E-cig aerosol would result in a wattage-dependent increase in vascular endothelial dysfunction and arterial stiffening that would persist throughout the lifespan of the offspring. Pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to E-cig aerosol containing 50 mg/mL of nicotine at either 5- or 30-watts for the length of their gestation. Pups were aged out to 1-, 3-, 6-, and 12-months of age. Vascular structure was assessed through in-vivo pulse wave velocity (PWV) measurements on the left common carotid artery, and (following euthanasia) histological stains of elastin and collagen fibers of the abdominal aorta. Pulse wave velocity (PWV) was found to be significantly increased in the 30W group at 6- and 12-months compared to air controls. Elastin content was not statistically different between exposure groups at any timepoint. Vascular function was assessed through ex-vivo wire myography on the thoracic aorta. Endothelial dysfunction of the thoracic aorta was not found to be statistically different between exposure groups at the 1-, 3-, or 6-month timepoints. However, at the 12-month timepoint, exposed offspring did exhibit greater endothelial dysfunction than their nonexposed counterparts. These data imply that vaping with nicotine at a high wattage during pregnancy can induce structural and functional abnormalities in the blood vessels of adult offspring that are major risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

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