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Comparative Study
. 2015 Aug 17;28(8):1616-26.
doi: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.5b00190. Epub 2015 Jul 30.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the Mainstream Smoke of Popular U.S. Cigarettes

An T Vu  1 , Kenneth M Taylor  1 , Matthew R Holman  1 , Yan S Ding  2 , Bryan Hearn  2 , Clifford H Watson  2
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in the Mainstream Smoke of Popular U.S. Cigarettes

An T Vu et al. Chem Res Toxicol. .

Abstract

The mainstream smoke yields of 14 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined for 50 commercial U.S. cigarettes using a validated GC/MS method with the International Organization of Standardization (ISO) and Canadian Intense (CI) smoking machine regimens. PAH mainstream smoke deliveries vary widely among the commercial cigarettes with the ISO smoking regimen primarily because of differing filter ventilation. The more abundant, lower molecular weight PAHs such as naphthalene, fluorene, and phenanthrene predominantly comprise the total PAH yields. In contrast, delivery yields of high molecular weight PAHs such as benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[e]pyrene, benzo[k]fluoranthene, and benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) are much lower. Comparative analysis of PAHs deliveries shows brand specific differences. Correlation analysis shows strong positive associations between BaP and most of the other PAHs as well as total PAHs. The results suggest that BaP may be a representative marker for other PAH constituents in cigarette smoke generated from similarly blended tobacco, particularly those PAHs with similar molecular weights and chemical structures.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chemical structure, molecular weight, and boiling point of 14 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon analytes.
Figure 2
Figure 2
PAH Levels in 3R4F and 2R4F reference cigarettes. PAHs are arranged by ascending molecular weight and boiling point. Y-axis depicts PAH yield on a log-2 scale.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Coefficients of variance of 3R4F PAH yields.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Total PAH yields measured under ISO and CI smoking regimens. Cigarette abbreviation: ASB, American Spirit Blue.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Average yields of individual PAHs for all 50 commercial cigarettes. Y-axis depicts PAH yield on a log-2 scale.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Spider-chart showing BaP correlation with individual and total PAHs. Individual PAHs are arranged clockwise by ascending molecular weight and boiling point.
Figure 7
Figure 7
Linear relationships between BaP yields with other PAHs using the ISO smoking regimen.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Linear relationships between BaP yields and other high molecular weight PAHs using the CI smoking regimen.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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