Nearly $17M Invested to Fast-track Studies on Health Impacts of Vaping, Nicotine on Youth
The American Heart Association is investing nearly $17 million to fund a two-year research initiative, ENACT (End Nicotine Addiction in Children and Teens) led by scientists from Boston University School of Medicine, the Ohio State University and Yale University focusing on the health impacts of e-cigarettes and other nicotine delivery systems on youth and young adults.
This is the latest in a multipronged, ongoing commitment announced last fall by the American Heart Association to fight the growing epidemic of youth vaping.
Dr. Naomi Hamburg, the Joseph A. Vita, MD Professor and chief of the Section of Vascular Biology, will lead a team to establish the Rapidly Advancing Discovery to Arrestthe Outbreak of Youth Vaping Center. It will include four intersecting projects at Boston University, Johns Hopkins University, Stanford University and the University of Louisville. These projects include: basic research using human induced pluripotent stem cell samples to test the toxicity of the components of e-cigarettes; mobile health technology to measure the physiological cardiovascular impacts of e-cigarettes on youth in real-world settings and a virtual reality and text messaging delivered e-cigarette cessation program for youth developed by combining social media methods with focus groups.
Read More in the BUSM story by Lisa Brown