Effects of Fetal Exposure to Heat-Not-Burn Tobacco on Testicular Function in Male Offspring

Several studies show that maternal conventional cigarette smoking during pregnancy has been associated with reduced sperm concentration in sons. The development of heat-not-burn (HnB) tobacco has gained a growing following. However, the effects of prenatal HnB tobacco smoking on male offspring are as yet unknown. Pregnant CD-1 mice were exposed to I-Quit-Ordinary-Smoking (IQOS) (HnB tobacco) aerosol from heat sticks, mainstream smoke from 3R4F (conventional cigarettes) or clean air, using a whole-body exposure system. Adult male offspring mice were divided into six groups: control (5- and 15-weeks-old offspring), IQOS (5 and 15-weeks-old) and 3R4F (5 and 15-weeks-old). Spermatogenesis, sperm characteristics, serum testosterone, and seminiferous tubule morphology were evaluated. Prenatal IQOS exposure increased abnormal seminiferous tubule morphology and decreased sperm production at 5 weeks, but 3R4F exposure did not. Prenatal exposure to IQOS aerosol delays sexual maturation of male offspring or adversely affects the male testicular function of the offspring more than smoke from a combustion cigarette.