Researchers at Wayne State University are investigating how prenatal vaping exposure alters infant lung immunity and increases infection risks.
RT’s Three Key Takeaways:
- Federal Research Grant: Wayne State University researchers received a five-year, $2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to evaluate how prenatal e-cigarette exposure impairs fetal lung immune development.
- Sex-Specific Differences: Preliminary findings indicate that e-cigarette aerosol components alter pulmonary immune pathways differently in male and female offspring, resulting in varying vulnerability to neonatal respiratory infections.
- Targeted Postnatal Therapy: The multi-year project will test whether postnatal treatment with interferon beta can restore protective antiviral responses and repair disrupted gene networks in exposed newborns.
Researchers at the Wayne State University School of Medicine’s CS Mott Center for Human Growth and Development have secured a five-year, $2.4 million grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The funding supports an investigation into how gestational exposure to electronic cigarette components and flavors impacts prenatal respiratory immune development and raises the risk of respiratory viral infections in offspring.
Dr Jayanth Ramadoss, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and director of the pregnancy and environment division at the CS Mott Center for Human Growth and Development, serves as lead principal investigator alongside co-principal investigator Dr Marta Rodriguez-Garcia, associate professor of biochemistry, microbiology, and immunology at Wayne State University, the announcement stated.
“This project addresses an urgent and timely question in maternal and child health,” said Dr Jayanth Ramadoss, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and director of the pregnancy and environment division at the CS Mott Center for Human Growth and Development. “Electronic cigarettes are often viewed as a safer alternative to combustible cigarettes, but our preliminary findings suggest that exposure during pregnancy can alter the developing lung immune environment of the fetus. Understanding these effects is essential if we are to protect newborns from respiratory complications later in life.”
Investigating Pulmonary Pathways and Sex Differences
Electronic cigarette use during pregnancy represents a growing public health concern due to common perceptions that e-cigarettes are less harmful than conventional combustible tobacco, according to the release. Despite mounting evidence of developmental harm, significant gaps remain in understanding how gestational exposure alters pulmonary immune programming and neonatal antiviral defenses.
The project will examine how chemical constituents found in newer-generation devices, including acid, base, and salt formulations, alter pulmonary defenses in a sex-specific manner, according to the researchers. Preliminary data from the Ramadoss laboratory showed that prenatal exposure to these aerosol components disrupts innate immune pathways within fetal lungs, including viral-sensing pathways, type I interferon signaling, and neutrophil-related immune responses. These cellular alterations differed between male and female offspring and correlated directly with higher rates of neonatal viral susceptibility.
The research team underscored biological sex as a critical determinant of fetal immune programming, noting that male and female organs do not respond identically to gestational vaping aerosols. Mapping these sex-specific variations could guide targeted clinical interventions for at-risk infants, according to the study authors.
“Our goal is to understand how prenatal environmental exposures shape the immune system before birth,” said Dr Marta Rodriguez-Garcia, associate professor of biochemistry, microbiology, and immunology at Wayne State University. “By combining reproductive biology, immunology, virology and systems-level approaches, we can begin to define how e-cigarette exposure affects the developing fetal organs and whether targeted interventions can restore protective antiviral responses after birth.”
Translational Goals and Clinical Applications
The team will utilize preclinical models, specialized vaping exposure systems designed to emulate human usage, spectral flow cytometry, confocal imaging, single-cell ribonucleic acid (RNA) sequencing, computational modeling, and neonatal viral infection models, according to the release.
The investigation centers on three primary clinical aims:
- Defining the direct effects of gestational e-cigarette exposure on fetal lung immune cells, including neutrophils, macrophages, natural killer (NK) cells, and alveolar epithelial cells;
- Mapping disrupted gene networks and cellular signaling pathways using single-cell transcriptomics, computational modeling, and machine-learning models; and
- Testing whether postnatal administration of interferon beta can normalize altered gene pathways and restore antiviral protection in affected newborns.
Institutional leaders emphasized that translating these laboratory findings into clinical guidance will be essential for maternal and neonatal healthcare providers.
“This crucial research being done right here in Detroit is investigating a growing public health challenge,” said Dr Ezemenari M Obasi, vice president for research & innovation at Wayne State University. “Drs Ramadoss and Rodriguez-Garcia’s research will bridge cutting-edge science with real-world health outcomes to empower expectant mothers and healthcare providers with vital insights needed to protect our community’s most vulnerable future generations.”
“The work of Drs Ramadoss and Rodriguez-Garcia is an excellent example of the mission of the Mott Center,” said Dr Gil Mor, scientific director of the center and vice chair for research in the department of obstetrics and gynecology. “This project integrates environmental toxicology, pregnancy biology, fetal development, immunology and child health. It also addresses a critical clinical question: How exposures before birth may alter the health of the next generation.”
