Harmful effects of smoking while pregnant revealed in new study

The impact of cigarette damage to unborn babies has been revealed in a new stem cell study.

An Edinburgh University-led research team has developed a way to monitor the long-term effects on liver tissue of pregnant mothers smoking using embryonic stem cells.

Chemicals found in cigarette smoke have been shown to damage foetal liver cells, but they affect boys and girls differently.

Dr David Hay, from Edinburgh University’s Centre for Regenerative Medicine, said: “This new approach means that we now have sources of renewable tissue that will enable us to understand the cellular effect of cigarettes on the unborn foetus.”

The liver is vital in clearing toxic substances and plays a major role in regulating metabolism.

Smoking cigarettes, which contain around 7,000 chemicals, can damage foetal organs and may do lasting harm.

Scientists used pluripotent stem cells – non-specialised cells with the distinctive ability to transform into other cell types – to build foetal liver tissue.

These were exposed to harmful chemicals found in cigarettes, including specific substances known to circulate in foetuses when mums smoke.

The study showed a chemical cocktail similar to that found in cigarettes harmed foetal liver health more than individual components.

Findings also showed the chemicals damage the liver differently in male and female foetuses, with male tissue showing liver scarring and female tissue showing more damage to cell metabolism.