Comparative toxicity of menthol- and tobacco-flavored electronic cigarette constituents inducing inflammation, epithelial barrier dysfunction, and nicotinic acetylcholine receptor modulation in the absence of nicotine

These findings suggested that common constituents in menthol- and tobacco-flavored ENDS induce lung inflammation, epithelial barrier dysfunction, and lung injury. Further, our data implicate potential lung disease pathogenesis via α-nAChRs modulation-mediated inflammation by exposure to these ENDS constituents, even in the absence of nicotine.