New study uncovers negative effects of vaping

Researchers from Western University’s Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry and Lawson Health Research Institute recently published a preclinical study that suggests vaping may have a deleterious impact on the pulmonary surfactant in the lungs.A vital layer in the lungs called surfactant, which is composed of lipids and proteins, lowers surface tension to enable humans to breathe easily. Without surfactants, breathing would be more difficult and require assistance from a machine.The study has been published in the PLOS ONE Journal. “Vaping continues to be popular but not much is known about what happens with the aerosol when it enters the lungs,” says Dr Ruud Veldhuizen, Lawson Scientist and Professor at Schulich Medicine & Dentistry.”We realized that the first thing the vapour aerosol comes in contact with in the lungs is a pulmonary surfactant, which is an area our team specializes in.”The research team was able to study the effects by placing a film of surfactant inside a syringe and, then using a vaping device to push aerosol into the syringe.This allowed the vapour to directly interact with the surfactant. The researchers then mimicked inhaling and exhaling vapour into the syringe 30 times to resemble a standard vaping session.