Metals transfer from tobacco to cigarette smoke: Evidences in smokers’ lung tissue

Abstract

Tobacco use kills millions of people every year around the world. The current level of 11 metals in tobacco was determined and their transfer rate to cigarette smoke was calculated as the difference between the total metal content in cigarettes and the amount present in its ashes. The metals content was also determined in the lung tissue of smokers and non-smokers in order to evaluate the marks that smoking leaves in this tissue. Metals content in tobacco ranged from less than 1μg/g (Co, Cd, Pb, As and Tl) to several hundreds of μg/g (Al, Mn and Ba). The highest transfer rate from tobacco to cigarette smoke was found for Tl (85-92%) and Cd (81-90%), followed by Pb (46-60%) and As (33-44%). Significantly higher levels of As, Cd and Pb were found in the lung tissue of smokers compared to non-smokers, showing that smoking results in an increase of these metals in the lungs and that they contribute to the carcinogenic potential of cigarette smoke. This study presents important data on current metals content in tobacco and its transference to cigarette smoke and provides evidence of their accumulation in smokers' lung tissue.

Age-related accumulation of toxic metals in the human locus ceruleus

“…Elemental analysis of a subset of individuals showed that other neurotoxic metals apart from mercury can be taken up selectively by the locus ceruleus. Cadmium was found in the locus ceruleus of all ten individuals examined, which may not be surprising since cadmium exposure is common from widespread environmental sources [ 75 ], including cigarette smoking [ 76 ]. Cadmium in cigarette smoke taken up by the locus ceruleus may therefore be the reason smoking is linked to the risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [ 77 ], Alzheimer disease [ 78 ] and multiple sclerosis [ 79 ].…”

High‐dimensional single cell mapping of cerium distribution in the lung immune microenvironment of an active smoker

“…Previous studies have examined the potential for accumulation of metals derived from tobacco and cigarette smoke in the lungs of smokers, including cadmium and lead , which we have also observed in lung macrophages from some patients (data not shown), however cerium is generally not considered to be abundant in tobacco products. Furthermore, while we observed high levels of cerium in lung macrophages from some smokers, this was not universally the case for all smokers, and did not appear to directly correlate with overall cigarette smoke exposure as measured by pack‐years, suggesting that cigarette smoke itself may not be the source of the cerium observed in this study.…”

Metal Concentration Assessment in the Urine of Cigarette Smokers Who Switched to Electronic Cigarettes: A Pilot Study

“…Nephrotoxicity and carcinogenicity are the main toxic effects associated with the exposure to cadmium. Cadmium is a metal, which despite a low content in tobacco, is characterized by a high rate of transfer from tobacco to cigarette smoke [31]. In many studies, cadmium in urine is higher in smokers, being the most significant source of increased cadmium body burden [21].…”