Tobacco Culture Research Articles

The Effects of Filter Ventilation and Expanded Tobacco on the Tar, Nicotine and Carbon Monoxide Yields from Cigarettes Sold in Australia.

Cigarette brand variant names and characteristics such as the taste and feel of the smoke can mislead consumers into believing some products are less harmful. We assessed the characteristics of three common cigarette variants sold in Australia, "gold", "blue" and "red", to determine which characteristics differed by color, and which affected tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide (TNCO) yields. TNCO yields, physical parameters, expanded tobacco and filter ventilation were measured in cigarette color variants from eight brands. Filter ventilation and expanded tobacco were common across brands and variants. Compared to blue and red variants, gold variants had slightly shorter tobacco rods and greater filter ventilation. Gold variants had lower TNCO when measured using the industry-favored International Organization for Standardization (ISO) protocol. ISO-measured TNCO yields were associated with filter ventilation and tobacco rod length, but not use of expanded tobacco. When measured using the Health Canada Intensive (HCI) protocol, which better emulates human smoking behavior, TNCO emissions were markedly higher, and the emission differences by extent of filter ventilation were minimized, indicating that ISO measurements are misleading. These findings confirm that cigarette color names, and the filter ventilation levels they signify, remain misleading more than a decade after plain packaging eliminated pack colors in Australia, as higher levels of filter ventilation are not associated with reduced TNCO emissions measured using the HCI protocol. Consumer education and communication campaigns could amplify the impacts of Australia's newly passed tobacco legislation banning color and other variant names that imply reduced harm.

Diversity of extracellular vesicles derived from calli, cell culture and apoplastic fluid of tobacco

In recent years, there has been a growing interest in plant extracellular vesicles (pEVs) due to their immense potential for medical applications, particularly as carriers for drug delivery. To use the benefits of pEVs in the future, it is necessary to identify methods that facilitate their production in sufficient quantities while maintaining high quality. In this study, a comparative analysis of yields of tobacco pEV derived from apoplastic fluid, sterile calli, and suspension cultures, was performed to identify the most suitable plant material for vesicle isolation. Subsequent experiments focused on assessing the efficiency of small interfering RNA (siRNA) loading into callus-derived vesicles, employing various methods such as sonication, incubation, incubation supplemented with saponin, lipofection, and electroporation. Differences in loading efficiency among vesicles derived from apoplastic fluid, calli, and suspension cultures were observed. Moreover, our investigation extended to the presence of tobacco secondary metabolites, specifically anabasine and nicotine, within vesicles originating from three distinct tobacco sources. The outcomes of our study highlight variations not only in vesicle yields based on their source but also in their loadability and the presence of nicotine and anabasine. These findings contribute valuable insights into optimizing the production and application of pEVs for future medicinal purposes.

A Comparison of DNA-Methylation during Protoplast Culture of Ponkan Mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco) and Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.)

The epigenetic variation in protoplast regeneration is a topic that has attracted interest recently. To elucidate the role of DNA methylation in the regeneration of protoplasts from the ponkan (Citrus reticulata), this study employs the methylation-sensitive amplification polymorphism (MSAP) molecular marker technique to analyze changes in DNA methylation levels and patterns during the isolation and culture of protoplasts from ponkan and tobacco. Additionally, differential DNA methylation fragments are cloned, sequenced, and subjected to bioinformatics analysis. The results reveal that, for non-regenerable ponkan mesophyll protoplasts, DNA methylation levels increase by 3.98% after isolation and then show a trend of initial decrease followed by an increase during culture. In contrast, for regenerable ponkan callus protoplasts and tobacco mesophyll protoplasts, DNA methylation levels decrease by 1.75% and 2.33%, respectively, after isolation. During culture, the DNA methylation levels of ponkan callus protoplasts first increase and then decrease, while those of tobacco mesophyll protoplasts show an opposite trend of initial decrease followed by an increase. Regarding DNA methylation patterns, ponkan mesophyll protoplasts exhibit primarily hypermethylation changes accompanied by a small amount of gene demethylation, whereas ponkan callus protoplasts are dominated by demethylation changes with some genes undergoing hypermethylation. The methylation exhibits dynamic changes in protoplast isolation regeneration. By recovering, cloning, sequencing, and performing BLASTn alignment analysis on specific methylation modification sites in the ponkan, 18 DNA sequences with high homology are identified which are found to be involved in various biological functions, thereby establishing a foundational basis for genetic editing in protoplasts.

Why hospitals hire tobacco lobbyists: conflicts of interest among lobbyists’ clients

Abstract Lobbyists sometimes represent clients with seemingly adversarial policy interests. We seek to explain the occurrence of such ostensible conflicts of interest. In hiring lobbyists, interests encounter a tradeoff between access and agency. Although some lobbyists promise access to lawmakers, they may not lobby as contracted. Interests hire seemingly conflicted lobbyists more often when access is costlier and reputational risks are smaller. We examine the hiring of tobacco lobbyists by health interests, given the possibilities for shirking and reputational damage. We find that institutions such as hospitals hire tobacco lobbyists regularly and more often than membership-based health groups. Intergroup competition for access and lobby laws, especially anti-conflict laws, affect the use of tobacco lobbyists independent of rates of multi-client lobbying. Conflicts are more common today than ever but interests can protect themselves somewhat from opportunistic agents. Our findings also suggest that reforms can improve the representation of client interests.

Characteristic volatile product analysis of moldy cigar wrapper and filler using gas chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry.

Monitoring the changes of food products with easily applicable technique is important for the quality control of the products. Cigar wrapper and filler easily get moldy due to the existence of the native bacterial in the material and the moisture storage/production condition. Herein, we investigate the volatile compounds produced during the culture of tobacco using chromatography-ion mobility spectrometry (GC-IMS). 114 and 112 volatile compounds are determined with GC-IMS for the cultured cigar wrapper and cigar filler, respectively. Detailed fingerprint analysis and principal component analysis identify a series of compounds that can be used for the evaluation of the degree of mold development on cigar wrapper/filler. The results reported in this work may provide useful information for the quality evaluation of food products.

Multisectoral action to address noncommunicable diseases: lessons from three country case studies.

Multisectoral action is a central component of the global response to the rising prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). In this paper we aimed to unpack the definition of multisectoral action and provide an overview of the historical context, challenges, and recommendations alongside three country case studies: salt reduction in the UK, tobacco legislation in Nigeria, and regulation of edible oils in Iran. We used an iterative review process to select three country case studies from a list of 20 potential cases previously identified by WHO. At our third round of review we unanimously agreed to focus on salt reduction in the UK, tobacco regulation in Nigeria, and edible oil regulation in Iran as these represented rich cases on diverse risk factors from three different world regions that we felt offered important lessons. We conducted literature reviews to identify further data for each case study. Across the three studies a number of important themes emerged. We found that multisectoral approaches demand the often difficult reconciliation of competing and conflicting values and priorities. Across our three chosen cases, commercial interests and free trade agreements were the most common obstacles to successful multisectoral strategies. We found that early consultative stakeholder engagement and strong political and bureaucratic leadership were necessary for success. The complex multi-rooted nature of NCDs requires a multisectoral approach, but the inevitable conflicts that this entails requires careful navigation.

Growing tobacco on a small rural property: analysis of cost, volume and profit

Most of the exported tobacco is grown in the South region, totaling 96.8% of national production. The crop is produced on small rural properties with an average area of ​​14.2 hectares. However, the management of small rural properties is deficient. The agricultural costs involved in production are little known, causing a deficiency in the management of the business. Rural farmers also need planning and budgeting to assist in decision making, in addition to having some knowledge of accounting tools. Considering the lack of these factors in rural areas, the objective of this article is to demonstrate in a managerial way what is the Cost, Volume and Profit of the tobacco culture in a small rural property located in the Municipality of Prudentópolis-PR. Through a qualitative and quantitative approach. As a result, it was identified that the property presented low profitability due to the high costs and low sales price obtained. Finally, with all the cost and expense data collected and organized, it is possible to calculate the cost and profit volume with a focus on the variable costing method. The value of the calculation of the Accounting, Economic-Financial Break-even Point was obtained, as well as the Safety and Contribution Margin, as well as the Operational Leverage that were presented to the farmers, since they did not have full control over the costs, they were unaware of the calculation of the depreciation known only to them as “possible wear and tear of the goods”.

Examining local smoke-free coalitions in Armenia and Georgia: context and outcomes of a matched-pairs community-randomised controlled trial

IntroductionLocal coalitions can advance public health initiatives such as smoke-free air but have not been widely used or well-studied in low-income and middle-income countries.MethodsWe conducted a matched-pairs community-randomised controlled trial...

SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE, ADDICTION, AND TOBACCO LITIGATION: UNVEILING NICOTINE'S GRIP

This study explores the scientific data on nicotine addiction and how it relates to tobacco lawsuits. It highlights the complexity of addiction by clarifying the ways in which nicotine has its hold on people through a thorough analysis of study findings. The study also examines smoking cessation techniques, highlighting both their advantages and disadvantages in relation to the law. This paper attempts to provide a sophisticated understanding of nicotine addiction and its implications in tobacco litigation by combining scientific information with legal issues.

An expenditure analysis revealing how Philip Morris advertisements coincide with tobacco policymaking in Switzerland.

Prior research has linked media tobacco promotion to increased tobacco use and favorable perceptions of tobacco products. Switzerland's tobacco lobby employs advertisements to sway policy decisions in its favor, yet no recent research has assessed this in detail. Our study aims to provide detailed estimates of tobacco industry (TI) advertisement costs, focusing on Philip Morris International (PMI) in Switzerland, and examine potential chronological links between TI advertisement campaigns and parliamentary discussions on tobacco bills. By spreading knowledge on this issue, we aim to support the development of future tobacco advertisement regulations. We conducted an expenditure analysis of tobacco-related press advertisements in Swiss print media published between August 2020 and August 2021, accessed through the media intelligence firm Argus Data Insights. Advertisement costs were estimated using publicly available data. We plotted expenditure sums of PMI against key parliamentary session dates featuring discussions on proposed tobacco control measures, such as tighter restrictions on advertising. Over 12 months, 501 advertisements with tobacco-specific headlines were published in Swiss press media. Of these, 437 advertisements (87.22%) were linked to PMI. PMI accounted for 88.21% (CHF 6486969) of total advertisement expenditure. Notably, PMI advertisements coincided with key political sessions discussing tobacco legislation in parliament, with a limited presence outside these periods. PMI advertisements were published parallel to key moments of parliamentary discussions, suggesting an attempt by TI to potentially influence discussions. Applying such an advertisement monitoring methodology helps understand the contextual conditions of public health in Switzerland. By analyzing TI advertisements in print media, we sought to highlight regulatory gaps and support the creation of stricter advertising regulations. We recommend continuing such research to strengthen tobacco control policymaking. Key public health efforts should include raising awareness of TI tactics, implementing a comprehensive ban on tobacco advertising, and strategically engaging with the media in tobacco control campaigns.

Regime Shifting by Multinational Corporations within Constitutional Courts in Developing Countries: Analysing Tobacco Litigation

Regime Shifting by Multinational Corporations within Constitutional Courts in Developing Countries: Analysing Tobacco Litigation

SAT638 Understanding Heritable Metabolic Alterations Upon Paternal Preconception Nicotine Exposure

Abstract Disclosure: S.R. Aguiar: None. R. Chamorro-Garcia: None. Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) found in our environment can increase the risk of susceptibility to metabolic diseases, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Tobacco products harbor a cluster of harmful EDCs that are inhaled by smokers and dispersed through the air. Previous research showed that tobacco exposure during pregnancy can lead to developmental alterations that increase the risk of metabolic disease in the offspring later into adulthood. Although global tobacco use is higher among men than women, little is known about how paternal exposure to tobacco products contribute to metabolic disease in future unexposed generations. Paternal preconception exposure to environmental factors have been shown to lead to increased risk of disease in future offspring, though mechanisms of these heritable alterations remain unclear. Our research focuses on determining the mechanisms through which paternal preconception exposure to tobacco-related chemicals, such as nicotine, lead to metabolic disease, and the underlying mechanism of epigenetic inheritance of these metabolic traits. We hypothesize that paternal nicotine exposure elicits alterations in the paternal germline (i.e., sperm) that are transferred to the zygote upon fertilization leading to metabolic alterations in unexposed offspring. We found that paternal preconception exposure to nicotine leads to insulin resistance and increased plasma ghrelin levels in F1 females. In F1 males, we found different metabolic alterations in the form of altered fasting glucose levels and decreased plasma glucagon levels. Taken together, our current data suggest that paternal preconception nicotine exposure may alter ghrelin signaling pathways that lead to metabolic disruption in F1 females, as well as alter glycogen mobilization in F1 males. To determine the mechanism behind these heritable metabolic alterations observed in paternal nicotine-exposed offspring, we will investigate small non-coding RNA populations in the sperm of nicotine-treated sires. We will characterize heritable alterations during early embryogenesis by whole genome transcriptomics. These approaches will identify the mechanisms behind heritable metabolic alterations observed in offspring paternally-exposed to nicotine, as well as indicate what specific transcripts are impacted during early embryogenesis that give rise to these phenotypes. This project will provide insights into the intergenerational metabolically disruptive effects of paternal tobacco use and the mechanism of inheritance that drives these phenotypes, ultimately providing more evidence to change tobacco policies and legislation. Presentation: Saturday, June 17, 2023

Evaluación de los indicadores de control de Tabaco el MPOWER de la Organización Mundial de la Salud desde una perspectiva de género en Antioquia, Colombia.

Objective: To examine women’s perceptions of the implementation and enforcement of the Colombian national tobacco legislation in Antioquia, Colombia, through the lens of the MPOWER indicators, which is the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control guide.Methods: This was a cross-sectional study with a representative sample of women over 18 years of age in the nine subregions of Antioquia, using a multi-stage probabilistic sampling. Results: Out of 4,383 women who participated in the study, only 35% were aware of Law 1335, with awareness being the highest among white and married participants with college degrees, who have private health insurance, or residents in middle and high socioeconomic status. The degree of implementation varied across subregions, and participants percei-ved that monitoring tobacco consumption (M) and protecting the population from tobac-co smoke (P) have high levels of implementation in Antioquia, while warnings about the dangers of tobacco use (W) and enforcing the prohibitions on advertising, promotion, and sponsorship (E) are weak. In terms of offering help for quitting (O), only 8.5% of smokers or former smokers ever sought assistance from health professionals to quit smoking and, among those, only 2% received treatment covered by their health insurance plan. Conclusions: Even though tobacco control legislation is established at the national level, its enforcement relies heavily on local strategies. In Antioquia, efforts should be placed on educational strategies regarding warnings of the harms associated with tobacco use, enfor-cement of advertising and promotion of tobacco products, and provision of evidence-based tobacco cessation treatments.

Circumventing cigarette regulation: Product characteristics of cigarette-like cigarillos on the Dutch market.

Cigarillos have been reported to provide an alternative to cigarettes with a characterizing flavor, which are banned in the European Union. Additionally, they are cheaper than cigarettes. To better inform policy making, we wanted to gain better insight into the market situation for cigarillos in the Netherlands. We analyzed product data notified by manufacturers via the European Common Entry Gate system (EU-CEG), as extracted on the 1 June 2022. First, we identified parameters that allowed classifying cigarillos into cigar-like, cigarette-like and intermediate-type cigarillos. Next, we compared product characteristics for these groups. We identified five parameters that allowed classifying cigarillos into subtypes: product weight, filter presence, leaf tobacco percentage in the product, flue-cured tobacco percentage in the product, and the number of flavorings. Almost a quarter (71/285) of the cigarillos on the Dutch market were classified as cigarette-like. Compared to other cigarillo types, these have a high number of flavorings (average n=43), including many sweet and fruity flavorings. The package types of cigarette-like cigarillos resemble those of cigarettes. However, 85% of the cigarette-like cigarillos are available in smaller pack sizes than allowed for cigarettes. When comparing data over the period 2019-2022, we found a decrease in the number of cigar-like cigarillos and an increase in the number of cigarette-like cigarillos, which hints at a shift in the market composition. Cigarette-like cigarillos can provide a way to evade cigarette regulation. Moreover, their characteristics make them attractive for consumers, including young people. Regulators should consider amending regulations to close the regulatory loopholes that allow evading tobacco legislation.

An Accidental Historian

An Accidental Historian

From Hookah to Cigarettes: A Historical Journey of Tobacco Culture in Colonial Bengal

From Hookah to Cigarettes: A Historical Journey of Tobacco Culture in Colonial Bengal

Reigniting tobacco control: returning Australia to the front of the pack.

Australia has long been heralded as a leader in tobacco control, but more than 10 years have passed since the country implemented the world's first tobacco plain packaging reforms. In late 2022, the Australian Federal Government announced it would be "reigniting the fight against tobacco addiction". The forthcoming reforms package will help modernise and re-energise Australian tobacco control. The Government has signalled that preliminary reforms will include updating graphic health warnings, standardising tobacco pack sizes and filters, and banning menthol and flavours. The recently endorsed National Tobacco Strategy 2023-2030 also opens the door to further supply-side reforms. Ten years ago, when Australia fought multiple legal challenges from the tobacco industry and established plain packaging as a best practice standard, e-cigarette or vaping products were a fringe issue with little presence in Australia. Today, vaping product use by young Australians has dramatically and rapidly increased. Easy access and marketing of cheap, flavoured, disposable, nicotine-containing vaping products are driving use. Recognising that the current approach to e-cigarette regulation is not achieving its aim of preventing children and adolescents from accessing vaping products, the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) launched a consultation on possible reforms in late 2022. Currently, vaping importers and retailers are exploiting an exemption for non-nicotine products in regulations, and nicotine-containing products are masquerading as non-nicotine products. The ideal public health solution would see the elimination of all vaping product sales, nicotine and non-nicotine alike, that fall outside of the TGA prescription-only access pathway. After 10 years of minimal action, it is invigorating to have three key initiatives in play to fully "reignite" tobacco control - the tobacco legislation renewal and update, the imminent national strategy release, and the TGA consultation on vaping products. Re-establishing Australia as a tobacco control leader is welcome news for public health.

PMI’s IQOS and cigarette ads in Israeli media: a content analysis across regulatory periods and target population subgroups

BackgroundIQOS, manufactured by Philip Morris International (PMI), is the highest selling heated tobacco product globally. IQOS went through several regulatory changes in Israel: from no oversight to minimal tobacco legislation,...

A mixed-methods evaluation of the Tobacco Retailer Advanced Compliance (TRAC) online training (e-learning) program.

Tobacco vendor training is recognized as an essential element to reduce youth access to tobacco. The TRAC training program was developed utilizing best-practices in tobacco retailer training, adult instruction, and e-learning. The objective of this mixed-methods study is to evaluate the acceptability, usability and knowledge impact of an online tobacco retailer program. An interview guide and evaluation questionnaire were used to collect data on usability and acceptability. To test learner knowledge, each module included a final set of 15 questions randomly chosen and posed to participants before and after the training. Content analysis, chi-squared tests, Student's t-tests, and paired tests were utilized for data analysis. The evaluation was conducted in Alberta, Canada in 2020. A total of 128 participants enrolled in the study. The main themes revealed in the qualitative aspect of the evaluation were: the training was easy to navigate, engaging, informative, and beneficial to the staff's daily work. Compared with the pre-training test, a significantly higher post-training test score, mean and (SD), was recorded for clerks who completed the clerk training module [59.1 (12.8) vs 75.5 (11.1), t=8.6378, p<0.001], and managers who completed the managers training module [51.5 (11.1) vs 73.1 (12.3), t=7.6446, p<0.001]. Similarly, a higher number of participants achieved the passing score of 80% in the post-training test in all three groups. The online training was found to be acceptable and effective in increasing the mean individual score in the knowledge test and in increasing the percentage of participants achieving the passing score. The TRAC training is the first known tobacco retailer training course to employ best practices in tobacco retailer training, adult instruction, and e-learning. Further evaluation of long-term outcomes on employee behavior and on overall compliance with tobacco legislation is recommended.

Tobacco Consumption and Legislations Regarding Tobacco Use in India – Is It Time for A Policy Change?

One of the most consumed and readily available products causing psychological dependence among the population is tobacco and its related products. Though the government of India is undertaking measures to reduce tobacco consumption, factors like easy availability, lack of monitoring of tobacco use among youngsters, low cost and rapid absorption into the central nervous system is prompting people from a young age to the elderly to consume tobacco-related products. Legislative measures to reduce tobacco consumption seldom reach or benefit people as laws differ across States. This increases the prevalence of respiratory diseases like Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and lung cancer. This review article discusses the status of tobacco consumption in India with emphasis on tobacco-related legislation in States and associated health inequities.