Perinatal Nicotine Exposure Disrupts Hematopoietic Stem Cell Development and Elevates Influenza Susceptibility in Adulthood.

Tobacco use during pregnancy has many deleterious health consequences for not only the smoking mother, but also on the unborn fetus. Children of smoking mothers are reported to have higher frequency and severity of respiratory diseases later in life; however, the mechanisms driving this increased vulnerability are not clearly understood. One potential cause of increased disease susceptibility is an altered immune system, originating in epigenetically maladaptive hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs).

A rare HSC-derived megakaryocyte progenitor accumulates via enhanced survival and contributes to exacerbated thrombopoiesis upon aging.

Distinct routes of cellular production from hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) have defined our current view of hematopoiesis. Recently, we challenged classical views of platelet generation, demonstrating that megakaryocyte progenitors (MkPs), and ultimately platelets, can be specified via an alternate and additive route of HSC-direct specification specifically during aging. This "shortcut" pathway generates hyperactive platelets likely to contribute to age-related platelet-mediated morbidities.