Immunological effects of tobacco smoking in "healthy" smokers.

The history of tobacco smoking is quite extensive having existed for many years. Over the past 10-15 years significant gains have been made in curbing exposure to tobacco smoke, but tobacco smoke continues to contribute to significant disease. The immunological effects of cigarette smoking have been evaluated and can provide important insight into mechanism of disease. With the extensive growth in elucidation of basic immune processes within healthy host, further research is possible to aide understanding of immune alterations associated with smoking. Specifically, in the area of cellular immunity in which over 30 different cytokines contributing various regulatory functions in immunity, there are many proteins and mechanisms that may be altered. This review will cover the current state of knowledge in the areas of humoral, cellular immunity including results of cytokine studies in healthy smokers.