Gene breakthrough to make smoking less addictive
Reported January 21, 2009Professor Kazufumi Yazaki, a plant molecular biologist at Kyoto University’s Research Institute for Sustainable Humanosphere, has spent three years identifying the Nt-JAT1 gene as the transporter for nicotine.
He says he now aims to produce a cigarette that still tastes of tobacco but is less addictive.
“We will proceed now with experiments to raise tobacco plants that have no nicotine in their leaves, although there may still be some problems to overcome,” he told The Daily Telegraph.
“For example, we may find that blocking the transfer leads to accumulation of the nicotine in the root cells and that could prove toxic to the plant itself.”
Japan has a relatively high rate of smoking, with a study by Japan Tobacco in May 2008 showing that 39.5 percent of men and 12.9 percent of women smoke.
The figure for men was marginally lower than one year previously, although the figure for women was higher.
According to government statistics, more than 63,000 people die of lung cancer each year in Japan, the leading cause of cancer deaths.
Professor Yazaki, who is not a smoker, says his breakthrough will be of particular assistance for people who are trying to give up the habit.
“It has been pointed out that people smoke for the nicotine, but there are a lot of people who want to quit and have tried to stop, but say they miss the sensation of having a cigarette in their mouth,” he said. “There are people who will smoke regardless of whether the cigarette contains nicotine or not.”
Perhaps the biggest hurdle that Professor Yazaki needs to overcome is funding to continue his research, he said, as his grant runs out at the end of the fiscal year, in March.
“This is very important to human health, so perhaps I should start talking to Japan Tobacco,” he said. “Maybe they will finance my studies.”