An Updated Review of Inhalation Studies with Cigarette Smoke in Laboratory Animals

Abstract

Until recently, the published literature on inhalation studies with laboratory animals and cigarette smoke consisted entirely of negative findings, as far as neoplastic disease is concerned. This paper brings readers up to date, with analyses of recent studies that do indeed appear to report success after so many years of failure. The paper consists of a brief analysis of the literature up until a couple of years ago, giving brief, representative examples of inhalation studies with the five main species of laboratory animals that have been used: rat, mouse, hamster, dog, and nonhuman primate. A brief examination of the various technologies used to expose laboratory animals is given, along with an analysis of the histopathology and related toxicology data (specifically, biomarkers of exposure) that have been reported. The paper concludes by briefly mentioning the most recent studies, where positive results have been reported.