Abstract
Heat-treated and corresponding conventionally cured tobacco have been subjected to comparative studies. The heat-treating process has been carried out under laboratory and curing barn conditions. Analyses of the three different tobaccos show that the heat treatment leads to a considerable reduction of the polyphenols and a less pronounced reduction of nicotine. Determinations of the amount of total particulate matter, dry condensate, nicotine, and "phenol" in the smoke from cigarettes manufactured from the three types of tobaccos show that the heat treatment in the barn gives rise to a small but relevant lowering of these values. Examination of the ciliotoxic effect of the smokes on rabbit trachea in vitro reveals that there is a significant, although moderate, difference between the tobacco heat-treated in the laboratory and the control as regards the number of puffs required to achieve complete ciliostasis. A detailed gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric study using a high resolution glass capillary column and computerised data-acquisition demonstrates the absence of significant differences in the gas phases of the smoke derived from the differently treated tobaccos.