Figure 1

Schematic representation of the Smoking System, smoking dose calibration, and effects of cigarette smoke on blood carboxyhemoglobin (CoHb) levels. (A) Schematic representation of the smoking system. Smoke was generated by using a puffer box built by the University of Kentucky [33] and chambers built by Teague Enterprises. Each smoke type can be mixed with fresh air before it was puffed through a tube into the exposure chambers. In this study only the SSW chamber was used. The air and smoke in the chamber were exhausted using a blower fan (air moving fan). A vacuum pump/gas meter was used for dose calibration only. (B) The smoking dose was calibrated to 25 mg TPM/m³ by adjusting the intake and exhaust valves. Smoke samples taken from the SSW chamber were passed through a filter unit; the particulate material deposited onto the filter was measured by weighing the filter before and after smoke filtration. The vacuum pump gas meter recorded the smoke sample volume passed through the filter. Total particulate matter (TPM) was calculated by dividing the total particle weight trapped on the filter by the volume passed through the filter. w.c. = water column. (C) Mice were exposed to SSW smoke for 6 hrs intermittently and blood was drawn to test for carboxyhemoglobin. Blood was treated with ammonium hydroxide, absorbance measured at 420 nm and 413 nm and the ratio plotted. C = control.