Carcinogenic E–Cigarettes

A study published in the journal ‘Oral Oncology’ warns that e–cigarettes too can damage cells in a way that could lead to cancer. The study undertaken by researchers from the University of California reports that e–cigarettes, often marketed as a safer alternative to regular cigarettes may damage cells even without nicotine.

There aren’t many researches on the effect of e–cigarettes and hence, Californian researchers created an extract from the vapour of e–cigarettes to treat human cells in petri dish. In the ensuing research, it was discovered that treated cells were more likely to show DNA damage and die as compared to the untreated ones. The cells showed multiple damages including DNA strand breaks.

DNA is composed of double helix, which has two long strands of molecules that intertwine and when one or both of these strands break apart and the repair process doesn’t work right, the stage is set for cancer. In addition, the affected cells were also more likely to launch into programmed cell death or cell injury known as apoptosis and necrosis.