ArticleCommunications medicine2025
Flavored e-cigarettes modulate embryo development, fetal growth, and potentiate early fetal demise without nicotine.
Article in Communications medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Electronic Cigarettes and Female Reproduction: A Systematic Review of Experimental and Clinical Evidence.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Pooled it
- E-cigarette aerosol-induced neurotoxicity during early brain development: mechanisms and outcomes.Pediatric research · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundElectronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) function by aerosolizing a base liquid containing nicotine and flavoring, used by an estimated 15% of pregnant women as a supposed safer alternative to traditional cigarettes. Our previous studies demonstrated e-cigarettes can delay gestation. Limited studies have examined in vivo effects on the placenta.
methodsWe exposed adult pregnant C57BL/6J female mice to flavored e-cigarettes with and without nicotine (VAPE NIC & VAPE). We measured implantation success (N = 10 SHAM, N = 17 VAPE, N = 13 VAPE NIC), erythrocyte presence (N = 29 SHAM, N = 29 VAPE, N = 26 VAPE NIC) and embryo elongation (N = 25 SHAM, N = 29 VAPE, N = 22 VAPE NIC) per implant site at day 6.5 at 13-21 weeks of age. Fetal and placental weight (N = 11 SHAM, N = 14 VAPE, N = 12 VAPE NIC) was evaluated at day 12.5 in mice aged 15-39 weeks, while placental gene expression was separately analyzed by offspring sex (N = 7 total, N = 3 sex-specific).
resultsHere we show that e-cigarettes cause similar embryo elongation and in the absence of nicotine, exhibit elevated implant site blood cell accumulation which may contribute to fetal demise. With nicotine, e-cigarettes elicit a reduction in embryo to placental weight ratios. Genes involved in hypoxia, reactive oxygen species response, and placental growth including hypoxia inducible factor 1, alpha subunit (Hif1a), prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthase 2 (Ptgs2), glutathione peroxidase family members 2 and 3 (Gpx2/Gpx3), thioredoxin reductase 1 (Txnrd1), and mitogen-activated protein kinase 1 (Mapk1) exhibit marked decreases in placental tissue depending on fetal sex and nicotine presence.
conclusionsOur findings conclude flavored e-cigarettes modulate in vivo implantation and placentation mechanisms depending on the presence of nicotine. This work presents a measure of concern for flavored e-cigarette use during pregnancy.
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.