Maternal Smoking Effects on Lung Development and Childhood Asthma

Maternal smoking during pregnancy exerts profound and lasting impacts on foetal lung morphogenesis and postnatal respiratory health. Tobacco smoke constituents, notably nicotine, disrupt branching morphogenesis and alveolarisation, leading to reduced airway calibre and diminished lung volumes. Inflammation and oxidative stress within the developing lung promote airway remodelling and heightened airway smooth muscle contractility. Epigenetic reprogramming of lung and immune cells alters gene expression patterns controlling inflammatory responses and tissue repair, predisposing offspring to airway hyperresponsiveness and asthma. Epidemiological evidence links maternal smoking in utero to lower lung function indices, increased incidence of wheezing and persistent asthma in early childhood, and accelerated decline in lung function across the lifespan. These findings underscore the global importance of antenatal smoking cessation and inform public health strategies aimed at reducing childhood asthma burden.

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Maternal Smoking Effects on Lung Development and Childhood Asthma publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in maternal smoking effects on lung development and childhood asthma across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Alveolarisation: Formation and maturation of alveoli, increasing the surface area for gas exchange in the lung.

Airway hyperresponsiveness: Exaggerated constrictive response of the airways to a variety of stimuli, characteristic of asthma.

Epigenetic modifications: Heritable changes in gene expression potential without alterations in the DNA sequence, commonly via DNA methylation or histone modification.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ): A nuclear receptor that regulates genes involved in inflammation, lipid metabolism and tissue differentiation, including lung development.

References

1. Perinatal nicotine exposure induces asthma in second generation offspring. BMC Medicine (2012).
2. Life-long Programming Implications of Exposure to Tobacco Smoking and Nicotine Before and Soon After Birth: Evidence for Altered Lung Development. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (2011).
3. Transgenerational and intergenerational epigenetic inheritance in allergic diseases. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (2018).
4. Early-life exposure to indoor air pollution or tobacco smoke and lower respiratory tract illness and wheezing in African infants: a longitudinal birth cohort study. The Lancet Planetary Health (2017).
5. Maternal Smoking during Pregnancy and Early Childhood and Development of Asthma and Rhinoconjunctivitis – a MeDALL Project. Environmental Health Perspectives (2018).
6. Parental smoking and cessation during pregnancy and the risk of childhood asthma. BMC Public Health (2016).
7. Tobacco smoke exposure in early life and adolescence in relation to lung function. European Respiratory Journal (2018).
8. Early Life Origins of Lung Ageing: Early Life Exposures and Lung Function Decline in Adulthood in Two European Cohorts Aged 28-73 Years. PLOS ONE (2016).