ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, October 24, 1996 TAG: 9610240054
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: RICHMOND
SOURCE: Associated Press
Tobacco: It's not just for smoking anymore.
That could someday be the marketing slogan for tobacco if Virginia steps up efforts to promote genetic manipulation of the lucrative leaf.
With tobacco under political attack because of the health hazards of smoking, a task force established by the General Assembly is examining how science can expand the plant's uses.
The group concluded Wednesday that while the potential is great, Virginia lags behind other states in the burgeoning biotechnology industry and more study is needed.
By genetically altering tobacco plants, scientists are able to produce proteins and enzymes used in drugs, food and industrial compounds.
``Think of the plant as having an infinite number of applications,'' said Lou Tornatzky, director of the Southern Technology Council at Research Triangle Park, N.C. ``You can manipulate this plant and others in untold ways.''
For example, CropTech Development Corp. in Blacksburg has produced in tobacco an enzyme that could become a new treatment for people with a rare genetic disorder called Gaucher disease. It would replace a drug that costs patients up to $160,000 a year, said CropTech vice president Carol Cramer.
Other plants can be similarly manipulated, but tobacco is called the ``white rat'' of plant biotechnology because it is especially adaptable to alternative uses, Cramer said.
CropTech is one of the few Virginia companies specializing in plant-based biotechnology. Tornatzky said Maryland, North Carolina and Kentucky are among the states that have gotten a jump on Virginia.
``I'm a little bit embarrassed, frankly, that Virginia is this far behind,'' said Del. William W. Bennett Jr., D-Halifax.
Bill Small, a consultant with the state's Center for Innovative Technology, said the CIT cannot do more to encourage biotechnology development without more money.
``Let me advance the dirty word - tax,'' said Del. Mitchell Van Yahres, D-Charlottesville. ``I realize it's opening a can of worms, but if you're looking for big bucks, that's the only place to look.''
A biotechnology initiative at the University of Kentucky is funded by a half-penny-a-pack tax on cigarettes. Van Yahres suggested a cigarette tax increase in Virginia might fly if money is split between cancer research and programs to help tobacco farmers.
Sen. Charles Hawkins, R-Pittsylvania, was skeptical that science is the answer to the small tobacco farmer's problems. He said other countries can grow more tobacco because they don't have government-imposed quotas.
But Bennett said ignoring the potential of bioengineered tobacco ``is like saying we shouldn't pursue silicon because there's so much sand in the Sahara.''
According to figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Virginia ranked fifth in money generated by flue-cured and burley tobacco with 1993 cash receipts of $181 million. North Carolina was No.1 with $1.03 billion.
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