Our Historical Efforts to Reduce the Risks of Smoking

Cigarette in a scientific testing apparatus
CHAPTER 3 . Impact of Smoking

Our Historical Efforts to Reduce the Risks of Smoking

Dr Chris Proctor

Guest Author (Former BAT Chief Scientific Officer)

In the 1950s, tobacco product manufacturers began Research and Development (R&D) into the impact of tobacco use, following seminal research by Doll and Hill on lung cancer.[1]

 

BAT’s R&D facility opened in Southampton, UK in 1956. Initial research focused on trying to understand the issues surrounding smoking and health.

"In the late 2000s we developed a prototype cigarette for scientific assessment."

 

Dr Chris Proctor

Former BAT Chief Scientific Officer

Chris Proctor

Sign up for more exclusive the Omni™ content

When tobacco is combusted at around 950°C, it produces smoke comprising more than 7,500 compounds, of which around 150 are known toxicants.[4,5,6]

 

Over the decades, research expanded into novel technologies to reduce toxicants in cigarette smoke emissions.

 

These technologies can be split into five areas:

01

Tobacco selection with low levels of toxicants and pre-cursors

02

An enzyme treated novel tobacco with lower levels of toxicants

03

Non-tobacco dilution  technologies that could be blended with tobacco

04

Filtration technologies that could reduce vapour phase toxicants

05

Filtration technologies that could remove specific toxicants

Historically, certain cigarettes were developed that used treated tobacco or carbon filters to potentially reduce exposure to the carcinogens found in cigarette smoke.[5,6] Ultimately, due to lack of consumer interest and acceptability, some of these cigarettes were removed from the market.[7]

 

In the late 2000s, we developed a prototype cigarette for scientific assessment using a combination of these technologies – the Reduced Toxicant Prototype (RTP) cigarette. It was assessed to measure and understand the emissions, exposure, and potential risk, relative to smoking a conventional cigarette (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Overview of the design and scientific assessment of the Reduced Toxicant Prototype (RTP) Cigarette

Figure 1. Overview of the design and scientific assessment of the Reduced Toxicant Prototype (RTP) Cigarette

After extensive research, the toxicant levels of emissions from the RTP cigarette and its subsequent toxicological impact were reduced when compared to conventional cigarette smoke.[8,9] However, clinical results showed that adult smokers who used the RTP cigarette had the same levels in Biomarkers of Potential Harm# (BoPHs) as adult smokers of conventional cigarettes.[10]

 

It was concluded that the RTP cigarette was not a reduced-risk product. We published our data in a series of papers to show that, when tobacco was combusted in a cigarette, the technologies in the RTP cigarette would facilitate lower levels of toxicants, with lower toxicological impact, exposing adult smokers to lower levels of toxicants. However, crucially, these changes did not translate into a likely reduction in risk.

This conclusion, along with our historical research, formed the basis of the re-articulation of our THR strategy in 2013, which pivoted from combustible to non-combustible (smokeless) tobacco and nicotine products, and resulted in the launch of our first Vapour Product in July 2013.

checkmark

Reduced emissions

Overall changes in RTP toxicant yields compared to a conventional commercial cigarette[8,10]

 

   

Favourable

Change
Crotonaldehyde 90%▼ Yes
NNN 86%▼ Yes
Acrylonitrile 95%▼ Yes
NNK 62%▼ Yes
Acrolein 94%▼ Yes
3-ABP 44%▼ Yes
1,3-Butadiene 87%▼ Yes
CO 19%▼ Yes
4-ABP 17%▼ Yes

Emissions

checkmark

Reduced exposure

Overall changes in biomarkers of exposure in RTP adult smokers[10]

 

   

Favourable

Change
HMPMA 75%▼ Yes
Total NNN 65%▼ Yes
CEMA 57%▼ Yes
Total NNAL 39%▼ Yes
HPMA 34%▼ Yes
3-ABP 31%▼ Yes
MHBMA 31%▼ Yes
CO 19%▼ Yes
4-ABP 17%▼ Yes

Biomarkers of Exposure

checkmark

Reduction in BoPH

Overall changes in biomarkers of potential harm in RTP adult smokers[10]

 

   

Favourable

Change
11-dh-TXB 19%▼ Yes

8-iso-PGF2

Type III

 3%▲ No

8-iso-PGF2

Type VI

 6%▼ Yes

White Blood

Cell Count

 0% No Change

sICAM

 60%▲ No
HDL 8%▼ Yes
     
     
     

Biomarkers of Potential Harm

Footnotes

# Biomarkers of Potential Harm are markers of physiological processes in the body such as inflammation, oxidative stress, and DNA damage. (see Clinical: Individual Risk, Pages 190-193)

 

References

[1] Doll, R. and Hill, A.B., Lung cancer and other causes of death in relation to smoking. Br Med J, 1956. 2:1071. DOI: 10.1136/bmj.2.5001.1071

[2] IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, Tobacco smoke and involuntary smoking (No. 83). World Health Organization and International Agency for Research on Cancer, 2004. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK316407/

[3] Jenkins, R.A., et al., Mainstream and sidestream smoke. In The chemistry of environmental tobacco smoke: composition and measurement (2nd ed.), CRC Press, 2000. p 49-75. DOI: 10.1201/9781482278651

[4] Rodgman, A. and Perfetti, T.A., The chemical components of tobacco and tobacco smoke. CRC press, 2008. DOI: 10.1201/9781420078848

[5] The Wall Street Journal, A Potentially Less Toxic Cigarette To Get a National Push by Vector. 2001. Available at: https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB1004930384516626400 (Accessed: 20 August 2024)

[6] Laugesen, M. and Fowles, J., Marlboro UltraSmooth: a potentially reduced exposure cigarette? Tob Control, 2006. 15(6): p. 430-435. DOI: 10.1136/tc.2006.016055

[7] Reuters, Philip quashes Marlboro Ultra Smooth test. 2008. Available at: https://www.reuters.com/article/world/us/philip-quashes-marlboroultra-smooth-test-idUSN23254520/ (Accessed: 20 August 2024)

[8] Dittrich, D.J., et al., Approaches for the design of reduced toxicant emission cigarettes. SpringerPlus, 2014. 3: p. 1-23. DOI: 10.1186/2193-1801-3-374

[9] Combes, R., et al., The effect of a novel tobacco process on the in vitro cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of cigarette smoke particulate matter. Toxicol In Vitro, 2012. 26(6): p. 1022-1029. DOI: 10.1016/j.tiv.2012.04.011

[10] Shepperd, C.J. et al., Changes in levels of biomarkers of exposure and biological effect in a controlled study of smokers switched from conventional cigarettes to reduced-toxicant-prototype cigarettes. Reg Toxicol Pharmacol, 2015. 72(2): p. 273-291. DOI: 10.1016/j.yrtph.2015.04.016

Check out our other Omni™ chapters

  • Smokeless Products: An Introduction
    Read more
  • 01. Our Vision: A Need for Reappraisal
    Read more
  • 02. The Big Questions
    Read more
  • 04. Our Smokeless Science
    Read more
  • 05. Our Smokeless Products
    Read more
  • 06. THR: A Global Transformation
    Read more
  • 07. THR: Global Regulation
    Read more
  • 08. THR: Scientific Engagement
    Read more
  • 09. Our Future Outlook
    Read more
  • 10. References
    Read more
  • 11. Our Published THR Science
    Read more
Omni logo
BAT logo