The invention provides a process for treating tobacco material comprising: securing tobacco starting material within a sealed reactor preventing the ingress or exit of any gas or liquid; heating the tobacco material to a temperature of from about 60° C. to about 200° C. for a period of from about 6 hours to about 120 hours; allowing the temperature of the tobacco material to cool down to about room temperature whilst secured within the sealed reactor; and removing treated tobacco material from the sealed reactor. It also provides tobacco material treated by the process, extracts from said tobacco material, and to products including the treated tobacco material or extracts.

The invention provides a process for treating tobacco material comprising: securing tobacco starting material within a sealed reactor preventing the ingress or exit of any gas or liquid; heating the tobacco material to a temperature of from about 60° C. to about 200° C. for a period of from about 6 hours to about 120 hours; allowing the temperature of the tobacco material to cool down to about room temperature whilst secured within the sealed reactor; and removing treated tobacco material from the sealed reactor. It also provides tobacco material treated by the process, extracts from said tobacco material, and to products including the treated tobacco material or extracts.

In general, this invention belongs to the tobacco production and processing sector and more specifically it refers to the method of producing cut rag tobacco for cigarettes and other products from green tobacco leaves by the innovative integration of the GLT and Primary processes, with lower investment and operational production costs, while generating cut rag tobacco with high filling power while maintaining a flavor approximately equal to that of the original tobacco.

In general, this invention belongs to the tobacco production and processing sector and more specifically it refers to the method of producing cut rag tobacco for cigarettes and other products from green tobacco leaves by the innovative integration of the GLT and Primary processes, with lower investment and operational production costs, while generating cut rag tobacco with high filling power while maintaining a flavor approximately equal to that of the original tobacco.

A tobacco preparation method, where a tobacco material is prepared through at least one extrusion process including compressing the material with an increase in pressure and temperature and mechanically processing and abruptly flash drying the material at an extruder outlet, where the tobacco material includes a tobacco lamina material, where a tobacco preparation device includes a dosing conveyor and an extruder which compresses a tobacco material with an increase in pressure and temperature and mechanically process and abruptly flash dries the material at the extruder outlet, where the components are designated as a unit which can be modularly delimited for processing a tobacco material including a tobacco lamina material, where an arrangement of several tobacco preparation devices and a smoking article or cigarette manufacturing device includes such a device or such a device arrangement which is connected upstream of a cigarette maker or a secondary unit as a tobacco preparation module.

A tobacco preparation method, where a tobacco material is prepared through at least one extrusion process including compressing the material with an increase in pressure and temperature and mechanically processing and abruptly flash drying the material at an extruder outlet, where the tobacco material includes a tobacco lamina material, where a tobacco preparation device includes a dosing conveyor and an extruder which compresses a tobacco material with an increase in pressure and temperature and mechanically process and abruptly flash dries the material at the extruder outlet, where the components are designated as a unit which can be modularly delimited for processing a tobacco material including a tobacco lamina material, where an arrangement of several tobacco preparation devices and a smoking article or cigarette manufacturing device includes such a device or such a device arrangement which is connected upstream of a cigarette maker or a secondary unit as a tobacco preparation module.

A method of treating tobacco material including combining pre-cut and/or pre-expanded stem with lamina to form an initial combination of stem and lamina; cutting the initial combination of stem and lamina; expanding the combination of stem and lamina; and intermittently contacting the expanded combination of stem and lamina with a heated surface to produce a treated tobacco material. An apparatus is also provided for treating tobacco material. Also provided is a treated tobacco material, as well as products including the same.

A method of treating tobacco material including combining pre-cut and/or pre-expanded stem with lamina to form an initial combination of stem and lamina; cutting the initial combination of stem and lamina; expanding the combination of stem and lamina; and intermittently contacting the expanded combination of stem and lamina with a heated surface to produce a treated tobacco material. An apparatus is also provided for treating tobacco material. Also provided is a treated tobacco material, as well as products including the same.

There is described herein a plant cell (i) a polynucleotide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 60% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 1 (NtSULTR3;1A-S), SEQ ID NO: 3 (NtSULTR3;1A-T), SEQ ID NO: 5 (NtSULTR3;1B-S), SEQ ID NO: 7 (NtSULTR3;1B-T), SEQ ID NO: 15 (NtSULTR3;3-T), SEQ ID NO: 17 (NtSULTR3;4A-S), SEQ ID NO: 19 (NtSULTR3;4A-T) or SEQ ID NO: 23 (NtSULTR3;4B-T); (ii) a polypeptide encoded by the polynucleotide set forth in (i); (iii) a polypeptide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 2 (NtSULTR3;1A-S) or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 4 (NtSULTR3;1A-T) or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 6 (NtSULTR3;1B-S), or at least 88% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8 (NtSULTR3;1B-T), or at least 70% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 16 (NtSULTR3;3-T), or at least 84% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 18 (NtSULTR3;4A-S) or at least 79% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20 (NtSULTR3;4A-T); or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 24 (NtSULTR3;4B-T); or (iv) a construct, vector or expression vector comprising the isolated polynucleotide set forth in (i), wherein said plant cell comprises at least one modification which modulates (a) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or (b) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide the polypeptide, as compared to a control plant cell in which the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or polypeptide has not been modified.

There is described herein a plant cell (i) a polynucleotide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 60% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 1 (NtSULTR3;1A-S), SEQ ID NO: 3 (NtSULTR3;1A-T), SEQ ID NO: 5 (NtSULTR3;1B-S), SEQ ID NO: 7 (NtSULTR3;1B-T), SEQ ID NO: 15 (NtSULTR3;3-T), SEQ ID NO: 17 (NtSULTR3;4A-S), SEQ ID NO: 19 (NtSULTR3;4A-T) or SEQ ID NO: 23 (NtSULTR3;4B-T); (ii) a polypeptide encoded by the polynucleotide set forth in (i); (iii) a polypeptide comprising, consisting or consisting essentially of a sequence having at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 2 (NtSULTR3;1A-S) or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 4 (NtSULTR3;1A-T) or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 6 (NtSULTR3;1B-S), or at least 88% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 8 (NtSULTR3;1B-T), or at least 70% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 16 (NtSULTR3;3-T), or at least 84% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 18 (NtSULTR3;4A-S) or at least 79% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 20 (NtSULTR3;4A-T); or at least 87% sequence identity to SEQ ID NO: 24 (NtSULTR3;4B-T); or (iv) a construct, vector or expression vector comprising the isolated polynucleotide set forth in (i), wherein said plant cell comprises at least one modification which modulates (a) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or (b) the expression or activity of the polynucleotide the polypeptide, as compared to a control plant cell in which the expression or activity of the polynucleotide or polypeptide has not been modified.