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Chemical Composition of Aerosols from the E-Cigarette Vaping of Natural and Synthetic Cannabinoids
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    Chemical Composition of Aerosols from the E-Cigarette Vaping of Natural and Synthetic Cannabinoids
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    • Nicholas E. Robertson
      Nicholas E. Robertson
      Department of Environmental Toxicology, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
    • Jack Connolly
      Jack Connolly
      Department of Environmental Toxicology, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
    • Nikolay Shevchenko
      Nikolay Shevchenko
      Department of Chemistry, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
    • Mark Mascal
      Mark Mascal
      Department of Chemistry, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
      More by Mark Mascal
    • Kent E. Pinkerton
      Kent E. Pinkerton
      Center for Health and Environment, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
    • Sascha C. T. Nicklisch
      Sascha C. T. Nicklisch
      Department of Environmental Toxicology, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
    • Tran B. Nguyen*
      Tran B. Nguyen
      Department of Environmental Toxicology, University of California Davis, Davis, California 95616, United States
      *Email: [email protected]
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    Chemical Research in Toxicology

    Cite this: Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2024, 37, 12, 1965–1975
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    https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrestox.4c00326
    Published November 13, 2024
    Copyright © 2024 American Chemical Society

    Abstract

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    Vaping cannabinoids in electronic (e)-cigarette devices is rapidly increasing in popularity, particularly among adolescents, although the chemistry affecting the composition of the vape aerosol is not well understood. This work investigates the formation of aerosol mass, bioactive hydroxyquinones, and harmful or potentially harmful carbonyls from the e-cigarette vaping of natural and synthetic cannabinoids e-liquids in propylene glycol and vegetable glycerin (PG/VG) solvent at a 50 mg/mL concentration in a commercial fourth-generation vaping device. The following cannabinoids were studied: cannabidiol (CBD), 8,9-dihydrocannabidiol (H2CBD), 1,2,8,9-tetrahydrocannabidiol (H4CBD), cannabigerol (CBG), and cannabidiolic acid (CBDA). Quantification of analytes was performed using liquid chromatography coupled to accurate mass spectrometry. The addition of cannabinoids significantly increased aerosol and carbonyl formation compared with the PG/VG solvent alone. All cannabinoids in the study formed hydroxyquinones during vaping (up to ∼1% mass conversion) except for CBDA, which primarily decarboxylated to CBD. Hydroxyquinone formation increased and carbonyl formation decreased, with a decreasing number of double bonds among CBD and its synthetic analogues (H2CBD and H4CBD). During the vaping process, ∼3–6% of the cannabinoid mass can be observed as carbonyls under the study conditions. Oxidation of the terpene moiety on the cannabinoids is proposed as a major contributor to carbonyl formation. CBD produced significantly higher concentrations of formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, acrolein, diacetyl, and methylglyoxal compared with the other cannabinoid samples. CBG produced significantly higher levels of acetone, methacrolein, and methylglyoxal. Conversion of CBD to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) was not observed under the study conditions. The chemical mechanism basis for these observations is discussed. Compared with other modalities of use for CBD and other cannabinoids, vaping has the potential to adversely impact human health by producing harmful products during the heated aerosolization process.

    Copyright © 2024 American Chemical Society

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    Supporting Information

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    The Supporting Information is available free of charge at https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chemrestox.4c00326.

    • Tabulated data for aerosol mass concentrations of carbonyls and acids; NMR spectra of synthesized compounds; raw extracted ion chromatograms for the PG/VG control, unvaped H2CBD e-liquid, and H2CBD vape aerosol (PDF)

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    Chemical Research in Toxicology

    Cite this: Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2024, 37, 12, 1965–1975
    Click to copy citationCitation copied!
    https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrestox.4c00326
    Published November 13, 2024
    Copyright © 2024 American Chemical Society

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