Electronic Cigarette Exposure Disrupts Airway Epithelial Barrier Function and Exacerbates Viral Infection

Using confluent human bronchial epithelial cells and well-differentiated normal human bronchial epithelial cells, scientists found that exposure to extract and aerosol e-cig nicotine caused a significant decrease in trans-epithelial electrical resistance and the structure of the apical junctional complexes even at non-cytotoxic concentrations.