# Project 3 - Lung Health and Inflammation

> **NIH NIH P01** · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · 2024 · $259,627

## Abstract

ABSTRACT – PROJECT 3: Lung Health and Inflammation
Research has shown that adolescent cigarette smoking alters lung development, adversely affects respiratory
health, and contributes to chronic low-grade, systemic inflammation linked with the development of vascular
disease and cancer. However, the effects of vaping have not been fully evaluated. Rather than waiting
decades to fully assess the risk of vaping on the development of disease, we propose to characterize early
respiratory, physiological, and molecular effects of vaping during adolescence. Given the increasing number of
adolescents who vape frequently (20+ days a month), a better understanding of the health consequences of
vaping is critical to inform public health communication efforts. To address the gaps in knowledge of the
potential harms of vaping, the Multidisciplinary Assessment of Risks of Vaping in Early Life (MARVEL) Project
3 will test the hypothesis that vaping impairs respiratory health as early as adolescence, and that vaping
results in overlapping molecular signatures with cigarette smoke exposure and smoking-related disease
pathogenesis. Specifically, we will: 1) Characterize the effects of vaping on respiratory health in adolescence;
2) Identify molecular alterations in airways associated with vaping and respiratory health outcomes; and 3)
Characterize oxidative stress and systemic inflammatory alterations associated with vaping. To detect early
respiratory, physiological, and molecular effects of vaping during adolescence, we will leverage comprehensive
phenotypic characterization including bronchitic symptoms of over 4000 high school students from the Online
Survey, and repeated measures of lung function (St. George’s Respiratory Questionnaire and spirometry) and
collection of biospecimens (nasal epithelial cells and blood) from 360 high school students, at two lab visits 18
months apart. Nasal epithelial cells are robust surrogates for lower airway bronchial epithelial cells, and will be
used to examine the effects of vaping on the epigenome and transcriptome. Peripheral blood will be used to
examine the effects of vaping on systemic inflammation. Dose-dependency will be assessed by detailed self-
report, biomarkers (saliva cotinine, TNE, CEMA) and product characterization. Knowledge gained from Project
3 will inform the development of health communications in Project 4 relevant to the early respiratory and
systemic inflammatory effects of vaping during adolescence.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10836406
- **Project number:** 5P01CA269048-02
- **Recipient organization:** WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** GREGORY A HAWKINS
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $259,627
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-05-01 → 2028-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10836406

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10836406, Project 3 - Lung Health and Inflammation (5P01CA269048-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10836406. Licensed CC0.

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