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RationaleElectronic cigarettes (ECs) are becoming popular alternatives for smokers, but there has been limited study of their abuse liability.ObjectivesThe objective of this study was to evaluate the abuse liability of three Vuse Solo ECs, ranging from 14 to 36 mg in nicotine content, relative to high- and low-abuse liability comparator products (usual brand combustible cigarettes and nicotine gum, respectively) in a group of 45 EC-naïve smokers.MethodsEnrolled subjects’ ratings of subjective effects and nicotine uptake over 6 h were used to measure abuse liability and pharmacokinetics following in-clinic use of each EC.ResultsUse of Vuse Solo resulted in subjective measures and nicotine uptake that were between those of combustible cigarettes and nicotine gum, although generally closer to nicotine gum. Compared to combustible cigarettes, use of Vuse Solo resulted in significantly lower scores in measures of product liking, positive effects, and intent to use again. These pharmacodynamic findings were consistent with the pharmacokinetic data, showing that cigarettes produced substantially faster and higher levels of nicotine uptake as compared to Vuse Solo and nicotine gum. Vuse Solo resulted in more rapid initial uptake of nicotine compared to nicotine gum, but peak concentration and long-term extent of uptake were not different or were lower with Vuse.ConclusionsCollectively, these findings suggest that Vuse Solo likely has an abuse liability that is somewhat greater than nicotine gum but lower than cigarettes.Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02269514Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00213-017-4665-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

RationaleWe previously reported that following a short-term product use period, use of non-menthol Vuse Solo electronic cigarettes (ECs) resulted in product effect-related subjective responses and nicotine uptake between those of combustible cigarettes (high-abuse liability comparator) and nicotine gum (low-abuse liability comparator); the results were generally closer to those of nicotine gum.ObjectiveUsing a similar design to the previous study, we evaluated the abuse liability of three menthol-flavored Vuse Solo ECs with the same nicotine contents (14, 29, and 36 mg) in a group of EC-naïve, menthol cigarette smokers, relative to comparator products.MethodsSix-hour nicotine uptake and ratings of subjective effects were used to determine abuse liability and pharmacokinetics.ResultsUse of menthol Vuse Solo resulted in significantly lower responses to subjective measurements (product liking, intent to use product again, and liking of positive product effects), higher urge to smoke responses, and a lower peak (Cmax) and overall extent (AUC0–360) of nicotine uptake compared to smoking the usual brand menthol cigarette. When compared with use of nicotine gum, subjective responses to use of menthol Vuse ECs were in the same direction as those resulting from smoking cigarettes but were more similar to nicotine gum use in magnitude than they were to cigarettes.ConclusionThese findings are concordant with our previous results and provide evidence that menthol Vuse Solo ECs have abuse liability that is lower than menthol cigarettes and potentially greater than that of nicotine gum.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT02664012Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s00213-018-4904-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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