# E-cigarette aerosol effects on the cardiovascular system in rodents

> **NIH NIH R01** · STANFORD UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $474,327

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY:
E-cigarette aerosol contains reactive aldehydes including acetaldehyde, formaldehyde, and acrolein which are
highly diffusible into cells. These reactive aldehydes, also found in tobacco cigarettes and alcohol, are known
to cause cellular damage that can lead to cardiovascular disease. Further, ~560 million people in the world
carry an aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) genetic variant, ALDH2*2, that severely limits the metabolism of
reactive aldehydes such as those present in e-cigarette aerosol. Having an ALDH2*2 variant increases the
risk for cardiovascular disease, including cellular damage from a heart attack. However, little is known how the
reactive aldehyde levels in e-cigarette aerosol, coupled with this genetic difference present in reactive
aldehyde metabolism, effect cardiovascular physiology and cellular function.
Here, we will study the effects on the cardiovascular system of e-cigarette aerosol in addition to the individual
reactive aldehydes within e-cigarette aerosol using wild type ALDH2 or ALDH2*2 variant knock-in mice. We
will do so by (AIM 1) exposing wild type ALDH2 mice and ALDH2*2 knock-in mice to e-cigarette aerosol while
monitoring the heart by remote telemetry and quantifying in the heart and lungs the biochemical effects of e-
cigarette aerosol exposure. In isolated adult cardiac myocytes (AIM 2), we will determine in wild type ALDH2
and ALDH2*2 knock-in mice how the individual reactive aldehydes in e-cigarette aerosol alter cellular protein
adduct formation and cellular function. We will also determine how reactive aldehydes at the levels present in
e-cigarette aerosol affect cardiac myocytes subjected to hypoxia-reoxygenation injury. In human umbilical vein
endothelial cells and isolated lung primary endothelial cells (AIM3), we will also determine how reactive
aldehyde exposure causes changes in protein adduct formation and mitochondrial function that leads to
endothelial cell dysfunction.
My research team can bring specific skill-sets and unique tools to this field. We will perform studies to uncover
how e-cigarette aerosol and the reactive aldehyde present within the aerosol effect the cardiovascular system.
In particular, these studies will address the cardiovascular effects of exposure to e-cigarette aerosol and
investigate the effects of e-cigarette aerosol exposure on cardiac myocytes and endothelial cells.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9998015
- **Project number:** 5R01HL144388-03
- **Recipient organization:** STANFORD UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Eric Richard Gross
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $474,327
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-09-14 → 2022-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9998015

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9998015, E-cigarette aerosol effects on the cardiovascular system in rodents (5R01HL144388-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9998015. Licensed CC0.

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