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Evaluating the Comparative Pharmacokinetics of Nicotine After Administration Via JUUL or Tobacco Cigarettes

Evaluating the Comparative Pharmacokinetics of Nicotine After Administration Via JUUL or Tobacco Cigarettes

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT04053868
Enrollment
17
Registered
2019-08-13
Start date
2019-12-09
Completion date
2022-03-31
Last updated
2025-10-16

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

E-cigarettes, E-Liquid, Nicotine Administration & Dosage, Tobacco Smoking, Vaping

Brief summary

This is an observational, crossover design that will examine the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of impact of smoking tobacco cigarettes or vaping the JUUL electronic cigarette.

Detailed description

The goal of this study is to better understand the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics responses produced by the JUUL e-cigarette, compared to tobacco cigarettes, in e-cigarette and tobacco cigarette smokers. Specific Aim #1- To categorize the nicotine pharmacokinetic (PK) profile (maximum plasma concentration; time to maximum plasma concentration and area under the concentration-time curve) and compare when using the JUUL e-cigarette vs. a tobacco cigarette in a standardized manner. Specific Aim #2- To categorize the nicotine PK profile (maximum plasma concentration; time to maximum plasma concentration and area under the concentration-time curve(AUC)) and compare when using the JUUL e-cigarette vs a tobacco cigarette when using the product ad libitum. Specific Aim #3- To evaluate various outcomes following JUUL e-cigarette or tobacco cigarette use, both with standardized and ad lib use including: heart rate, plasma catecholamines, pulmonary function testing. Specific Aim #4- To evaluate and compare the effects on craving, reward and satisfaction when using the JUUL e-cigarette vs. tobacco cigarette.

Interventions

OTHERJUUL

Electronic Cigarette

OTHERTobacco

Tobacco Cigarette

Sponsors

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
CollaboratorNIH
University of California, San Francisco
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
21 Years to 70 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

* Healthy on the basis of medical history and limited physical examination, as described below: * \- Heart rate \< 105 beats per minute (bpm) * \- - Considered out of range if both machine and manual readings are above/below these thresholds. * \- Systolic Blood Pressure \< 160 and \> 90\* * \- Diastolic Blood Pressure \< 100 and \> 50\* * Age: \>= 21 & \<=70 years old * Body Mass Index (BMI) \<= 38.0 (at PI's discretion for higher BMI if no other concurrent health issues) * Willingness to avoid combusted marijuana up to 48 hours before each study visit * Nicotine strength of e-liquid of usual e-cigarette \> 0 mg/ml * Group 1 Experienced E-cigarette users * \- Current use of tobacco cigarettes (\<5 cigarettes per day) * \- Current e-cigarette use at least 15 days out of the past 30 days of a non-mod e-cigarette * Group 2 Primary Tobacco cigarette users: * \- Currently smoking \>= 5 cigarettes per day * \- Current e-cigarette use must be \< 5 times per month * Saliva cotinine \>=50 ng/ml or urine cotinine and/or NicAlert=6 * Must have a smart phone, computer, or tablet and internet access (for remote procedures)

Exclusion criteria

* Medical * \- Heart disease * \- Seizures * \- Cancer * \- Thyroid disease (okay if controlled with medication) * \- Diabetes * \- Hepatitis B or C or Liver disease * \- Glaucoma * \- Kidney disease or urinary retention * \- History of stroke * \- An ulcer in the past year * \- Active use of an inhaler for Asthma or Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) * Psychiatric conditions * \- Current or past schizophrenia, and/or current or past bipolar disorder * \- Major depression, current or within the past year * \- Major personality disorder * \- Participants with current or past minor or moderate depression and/or anxiety disorders will be reviewed by the principal investigator (PI) and/or medical monitor and considered for inclusion * \- History of psychiatric hospitalizations are not exclusionary, but study participation will be determined as per PI's or medical monitor's approval * Drug/Alcohol Dependence * \- Alcohol or illicit drug dependence within the past 12 months with the exception of those who have recently completed an alcohol/drug treatment program * \- Positive toxicology test for illicit drugs at the screening visit (Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) & prescribed medications okay) * \- Opioid replacement therapy (including methadone, buprenorphine, or other) * Psychiatric medications * \- Current regular use of any psychiatric medications is exclusionary, with the exception of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) and serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake Inhibitor (SNRI) and current evaluation by the PI and/or medical monitor that the participant is otherwise healthy, stable, and able to participate * Medications * \- Use of sympatholytic medications for cardiovascular conditions including hypertension (Example: beta and alpha-blockers) * \- Use of medications that are inducers of nicotine metabolizing enzyme CYP2A6 (Example: rifampicin, carbamazepine, phenobarbital, and other anticonvulsant drugs) * \- Concurrent use of nicotine-containing medications * \- Any stimulant medications (example: Adderall) generally given for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) treatment * Use of Other Tobacco Products (OTP) * \- Any of the following products in combination more than 15 times in the past month * \- - smokeless tobacco (snus, oral snuff, chewing tobacco) * \- - pipes * \- - cigars, cigarillos, little cigars * \- - blunts, spliffs * \- - hookah * Other/Misc. Chronic Health Conditions * Fainting (within the last 30 days) * Other life threatening illnesses as per PI's or medical monitor's discretion * Pregnancy * \- Pregnancy (self-reported and urine pregnancy test) * \- Breastfeeding (determined by self-report) * Concurrent participation in another clinical trial (at PI's discretion) * Inability to read and write in English * Planning to quit smoking or vaping within the next 60 days * Recent onset or change (worsening) in cough, fever and/or abdominal symptoms (vomiting or pain) in the past two weeks * Diagnosis of pneumonia in the past 3 months * Uncomfortable with blood draws * Known allergy to propylene glycol or vegetable glycerin

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Mean Nicotine ExposurePlasma collected at baseline (prior to any product use) and at 2, 5, 7, 10, 15, 30, 60, 90, and 118 minutes after end of standardized session.Plasma nicotine area under the concentrated time curve (AUC) (ng/ml\*h)

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Mean Systolic Blood Pressure Over TimeUp to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.Participant systolic blood pressure will be taken at Baseline (prior to use of any product) and at 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 100, and 118 minutes after the standardized sessions of e-cigarette and/or tobacco cigarette use on each arm. The mean of each time point will be averaged over time.
Mean Diastolic Blood Pressure Over TimeUp to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.Participant diastolic blood pressure will be taken at Baseline (prior to use of any product) and at 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 100, and 118 minutes after the standardized session during e-cigarette and/or tobacco cigarette use on each arm. The mean of each time point will be averaged over time.
Overall Mean Heart Rate Over TimeUp to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.Participant heart rate will be measured in beats per minute (bpm) at baseline (before any use of products) and at 2, 5, 7, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 100,and 118 minutes after the standardized sessions of e-cigarette and tobacco cigarette use. The mean of each time point will be averaged over time.
Mean Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale (MNWS) Score Over TimeUp to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.The Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale is an 15-item self -report scale designed to measure the severity of craving and withdrawal symptoms experienced during smoking cessation. Each item is on a scale of 0 to 4 with 0=none to 4=Severe. The responses to each item are summed to produce a total withdrawal summary score with a possible range between 0 and 60, with higher scores indicating greater withdrawal symptom severity with greater scores indicating a higher level of severity in nicotine withdrawal symptoms overall. The mean and standard deviation will be reported.
Mean Cigarette Evaluation Scale (CES) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mCES) Score Over TimeUp to 240 minutes after end of standardized sessionThe CES is a self-report survey measuring smoking/vaping satisfaction, psychological reward, aversion, sensations, and craving reduction. This 12-item instrument has a total score range from 12 to 84, with higher scores indicating higher perception of the above factors. The mean and standard deviation will be reported.
Mean Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mQSU) Score Over TimeUp to 118 minutes after end of standardized sessionThe QSU (Questionnaire of Smoking Urges) is a self-report survey, modified to replace cigarette with e-cigarette and smoking with vaping for use during both the tobacco cigarette and the E-cigarette Arm. This instrument is composed of 10 items; 5 items measuring desire/intention to smoke/vape with smoking/vaping perceived as rewarding (Factor 1), and 5 items measuring anticipation of relief from negative affect with an urgent desire to smoke/vape (Factor 2). Scores for each factor (1 and 2) range from 5-35 with higher scores indicating more severe craving. The mean and standard deviation will be reported.

Countries

United States

Participant flow

Recruitment details

Current users of nicotine were recruited from the San Francisco Bay Area as healthy volunteers for this study.

Participants by arm

ArmCount
Overall Study
Participants will exclusively use a JUUL E-cigarette device with a JUUL e-liquid pod on one study day and then exclusively a traditional tobacco cigarette on the other study day. The order in which the products are used are randomized using a Latin Square design. All participants will use both products (e-cigarette and tobacco cigarette).
17
Total17

Withdrawals & dropouts

PeriodReasonFG000FG001
Overall StudyWithdrawal by Subject10

Baseline characteristics

CharacteristicOverall Study
Age, Categorical
<=18 years
0 Participants
Age, Categorical
>=65 years
0 Participants
Age, Categorical
Between 18 and 65 years
17 Participants
Age, Continuous32.5 years
STANDARD_DEVIATION 8.4
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Hispanic or Latino
3 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Not Hispanic or Latino
14 Participants
Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
American Indian or Alaska Native
0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Asian
1 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Black or African American
0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
More than one race
3 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
Unknown or Not Reported
0 Participants
Race (NIH/OMB)
White
13 Participants
Region of Enrollment
United States
17 participants
Sex: Female, Male
Female
6 Participants
Sex: Female, Male
Male
11 Participants

Adverse events

Event typeEG000
affected / at risk
EG001
affected / at risk
deaths
Total, all-cause mortality
0 / 160 / 16
other
Total, other adverse events
2 / 161 / 16
serious
Total, serious adverse events
0 / 160 / 16

Outcome results

Primary

Mean Nicotine Exposure

Plasma nicotine area under the concentrated time curve (AUC) (ng/ml\*h)

Time frame: Plasma collected at baseline (prior to any product use) and at 2, 5, 7, 10, 15, 30, 60, 90, and 118 minutes after end of standardized session.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Nicotine Exposure4.6 ng/ml*hStandard Deviation 2.2
Tobacco CigaretteMean Nicotine Exposure9.2 ng/ml*hStandard Deviation 5.8
Secondary

Mean Cigarette Evaluation Scale (CES) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mCES) Score Over Time

The CES is a self-report survey measuring smoking/vaping satisfaction, psychological reward, aversion, sensations, and craving reduction. This 12-item instrument has a total score range from 12 to 84, with higher scores indicating higher perception of the above factors. The mean and standard deviation will be reported.

Time frame: Up to 240 minutes after end of standardized session

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Cigarette Evaluation Scale (CES) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mCES) Score Over Time49.5 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 12.87
Tobacco CigaretteMean Cigarette Evaluation Scale (CES) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mCES) Score Over Time47.7 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 14.18
Secondary

Mean Diastolic Blood Pressure Over Time

Participant diastolic blood pressure will be taken at Baseline (prior to use of any product) and at 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 100, and 118 minutes after the standardized session during e-cigarette and/or tobacco cigarette use on each arm. The mean of each time point will be averaged over time.

Time frame: Up to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Diastolic Blood Pressure Over Time75.6 mmHgStandard Deviation 12
Tobacco CigaretteMean Diastolic Blood Pressure Over Time76.9 mmHgStandard Deviation 10.6
Secondary

Mean Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale (MNWS) Score Over Time

The Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale is an 15-item self -report scale designed to measure the severity of craving and withdrawal symptoms experienced during smoking cessation. Each item is on a scale of 0 to 4 with 0=none to 4=Severe. The responses to each item are summed to produce a total withdrawal summary score with a possible range between 0 and 60, with higher scores indicating greater withdrawal symptom severity with greater scores indicating a higher level of severity in nicotine withdrawal symptoms overall. The mean and standard deviation will be reported.

Time frame: Up to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale (MNWS) Score Over Time12 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 8.75
Tobacco CigaretteMean Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale (MNWS) Score Over Time11 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 8.03
Secondary

Mean Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mQSU) Score Over Time

The QSU (Questionnaire of Smoking Urges) is a self-report survey, modified to replace cigarette with e-cigarette and smoking with vaping for use during both the tobacco cigarette and the E-cigarette Arm. This instrument is composed of 10 items; 5 items measuring desire/intention to smoke/vape with smoking/vaping perceived as rewarding (Factor 1), and 5 items measuring anticipation of relief from negative affect with an urgent desire to smoke/vape (Factor 2). Scores for each factor (1 and 2) range from 5-35 with higher scores indicating more severe craving. The mean and standard deviation will be reported.

Time frame: Up to 118 minutes after end of standardized session

ArmMeasureGroupValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mQSU) Score Over TimeFactor 1: desire/intention to smoke/vape with smoking/vaping perceived as rewarding20.9 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 9.62
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mQSU) Score Over TimeFactor 2: anticipation of relief from negative affect with an urgent desire to smoke/vape13.5 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 8.72
Tobacco CigaretteMean Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mQSU) Score Over TimeFactor 1: desire/intention to smoke/vape with smoking/vaping perceived as rewarding19.0 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 9.96
Tobacco CigaretteMean Questionnaire of Smoking Urges (QSU) and Modified for E-cigarettes (mQSU) Score Over TimeFactor 2: anticipation of relief from negative affect with an urgent desire to smoke/vape11.3 score on a scaleStandard Deviation 8.28
Secondary

Mean Systolic Blood Pressure Over Time

Participant systolic blood pressure will be taken at Baseline (prior to use of any product) and at 5, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 100, and 118 minutes after the standardized sessions of e-cigarette and/or tobacco cigarette use on each arm. The mean of each time point will be averaged over time.

Time frame: Up to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Mean Systolic Blood Pressure Over Time123 mmHgStandard Deviation 12.3
Tobacco CigaretteMean Systolic Blood Pressure Over Time122 mmHgStandard Deviation 11.8
Secondary

Overall Mean Heart Rate Over Time

Participant heart rate will be measured in beats per minute (bpm) at baseline (before any use of products) and at 2, 5, 7, 10, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90, 100,and 118 minutes after the standardized sessions of e-cigarette and tobacco cigarette use. The mean of each time point will be averaged over time.

Time frame: Up to 118 minutes after end of standardized session.

ArmMeasureValue (MEAN)Dispersion
E-cigarette (JUUL)Overall Mean Heart Rate Over Time69.4 bpmStandard Deviation 11.6
Tobacco CigaretteOverall Mean Heart Rate Over Time73.4 bpmStandard Deviation 13.1

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026