烟草在线据美国商业电讯报道编译　　22世纪公司(OTCBB: XXII)7月11日宣布，该公司的NBB基因获得了中华人民共和国国家知识产权局颁发的许可通知书和澳大利亚知识产权局颁发的专利，该基因能调控烟草植物中的尼古丁合成，该公司已开发出烟草减害的突破性技术和一些戒烟产品。

　　中国和澳大利亚的全国性专利来源于国际专利申请PCT/IB2006/001741，该申请包含生产低含量尼古丁烟草植物的方法以及采用此类植物生产烟草产品的方法。NBB不仅调控尼古丁水平，也调控其他烟碱的合成，例如新烟草碱和假木贼碱。

　　NBB基因为一种称为"尼古丁合成酶"的蛋白质编码，该蛋白质参与尼古丁生物合成的最后一步，数十年来一直困扰着科学家们。该蛋白质既能下调，也能上调，从而衍生出尼古丁水平迥异的不同烟草变种。奈良先端科学技术大学院大学(NAIST)的桥本隆博士是世界著名的植物分子生物学家，也是NBB技术的发明者。22世纪公司在2005-2009年间资助了NAIST的研发，而NAIST在2010年回报以各类相关的专利配套，包括NBB技术。国际专利申请PCT/IB2006/004043包含采用NBB生产烟草植物和高含量尼古丁产品的方法。

　　公司研发副总裁Michael Moynihan博士表示：“NBB基因技术是22nd Century的知识产权基石之一，代表着我们的第二代基因技术，显著优于我们早先的技术。”特别要指出，NBB的唯一功能是合成尼古丁和其他烟碱。

　　22世纪公司希望，NBB基因技术能在减少吸烟危害中发挥重要作用。该公司在2012年4月10日宣布将向美国食品药品管理局(FDA)递交两种风险改良卷烟的上市申请，这两种卷烟符合FDA的风险改良烟草产品申请指导意见草案。9月9-12日在北卡罗莱纳州Concord召开的第66届烟草科学研究会议上，22世纪公司将做题为吸焦油与尼古丁之比低的卷烟对烟雾暴露的效应的呈报。该呈报将总结22世纪公司规划中的两种候选的风险改良卷烟之一的暴露研究。

　　22世纪公司是78个国家中102项已颁发专利的权属人或独家被授权人，另外还有37项专利在申请中--这些专利主要涉及尼古丁生物合成的所有关键基因、以及有望从这些基因衍生的风险改良烟草产品。22世纪公司是中国6项专利的权属人或独家被授权人，另外还有2项专利在申请中，在澳大利亚也拥有5项专利。该公司将在两国递交其他专利申请。中国是世界最大的烟草市场，每年消费超过2万亿支卷烟。

Chinese and Australian Patents Allowed for 22nd Century's NBB Nicotine Biosynthesis Gene

　　International Patent Application PCT/IB2006/001741, from which the Chinese and Australian national-phase patents were derived to 22nd Century Group, Inc., covers methods for producing tobacco plants with reduced nicotine levels and tobacco products produced therefrom. Besides nicotine, NBB is also responsible for the production of other nicotinic alkaloids, such as anatabine and anabasine. The NBB gene is a gene responsible for nicotine production in the tobacco plant.

　　The NBB gene encodes a protein involved in the final step of nicotine biosynthesis, "nicotine synthase," which has eluded scientists for decades. This protein can either be down-regulated or up-regulated to produce tobacco varieties with a wide range of nicotine levels. Dr. Takashi Hashimoto of the Nara Institute of Science and Technology (NAIST), a world-renowned plant molecular biologist, is an inventor of the NBB technology. 22nd Century funded research and development at NAIST from 2005 to 2009 and NAIST assigned various related patent families to 22nd Century in 2010, including the NBB technology. International Patent Application PCT/IB2006/004043 covers methods utilizing NBB for producing tobacco plants and products with increased nicotine levels.

　　The company's vice president of research and development, Dr. Michael Moynihan stated, "The NBB gene technology is one of the keystones of 22nd Century's intellectual property and represents our second-generation gene technology that has significant advantages over our earlier technology." Specifically, the sole function of NBB is to produce nicotine and other nicotinic alkaloids.

　　22nd Century expects the NBB gene technology to play an important role in reducing the harm caused by smoking. The company announced on April 10, 2012 that it will file applications with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for two types of modified risk cigarettes in accordance with the FDA's Modified Risk Tobacco Product Applications Draft Guidance. A presentation titled, Effect of Smoking Low Tar-to-Nicotine Ratio Cigarettes on Smoke Exposure, will be given by 22nd Century Group at the 66th Tobacco Science Research Conference being held in Concord, North Carolina on September 9-12. The presentation will summarize 22nd Century's planned exposure study on one of its two modified-risk cigarette candidates.

　　22nd Century owns or is the exclusive licensee of 102 issued patents in 78 countries plus an additional 37 pending patent applications - mainly related to all of the key nicotine biosynthesis genes and the potential modified risk tobacco products produced therefrom. 22nd Century owns or is the exclusive licensee of 6 patents in China plus 2 pending patent applications and 5 patents in Australia. Additional patent applications will be filed by the company in both countries. China is the largest tobacco market in the world that consumes more than 2 trillion cigarettes per year.