Comparison of electronic cigarette smoke and conventional cigarette smoke exposure on brain histopathology and brain-derived neurotrophic factor level

Abstract

Objectives: This study aims to evaluate and compare the effects of exposure to electronic and conventional cigarette smoke on the levels of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and the histopathological features of the brain in rats. Methods: 24 male Wistar rats were divided into three groups: a control group (no exposure to cigarette smoke) and two experimental groups exposed to either regular cigarette smoke (1.8 mg nicotine, 32 mg tar, 25 minutes/day for 4 weeks) or e-cigarette aerosol (1.8 mg/mL nicotine solution, 30 minutes/day for 30 days). Result: The results indicate that the BDNF levels in the conventional cigarette group were 1.27 higher than the control group, showing a relatively small difference.