DNA methylation is an important process in epigenetics. By attaching methyl groups to the cytosine base in certain gene regions, the activity of the affected genes can be suppressed. However, a person's epigenome is not fixed, but is influenced by lifestyle and environmental factors*.

For the investigations, cells from the cheeks, saliva, cervix and whole blood samples were obtained from healthy volunteers and than methylation analyses were carried out using a specific procedure. The investigations revealed that smoking leads to cell type-specific functional epigenetic changes in epithelial and immune cells, depending on their anatomical location. In people who have given up smoking, these cell type-specific effects of smoking are attenuated. The consumption of e-cigarettes and smokeless tobacco alters the epigenome of oral epithelial cells in a similar way to cigarette smoking.

The consumption of cigarettes and e-cigarettes leads to cell- and exposure-specific epigenetic effects that could also predict lung cancer. The authors urge caution when recommending e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation aid.

Original publication:
Chiara Herzog, Allison Jones, Iona Evans, Janhavi R. Raut, Michal Zikan, David Cibula, Andrew Wong, Hermann Brenner, Rebecca C. Richmond, Martin Widschwendter; "Cigarette smoking and e-cigarette use induce shared DNA methylation changes linked to carcinogenesis"; Cancer Research, 2024-3-19.

* https://www.lungeninformationsdienst.de/forschung/epigenetik/umwelteinfluesse