Tobacco Plants Used to Treat Meth Addiction?

Researchers at the University of Arkansas are attempting to use tobacco plants as DNA portein "factories" to produce an agent that could later be extracted and used to treat people who are addicted to methamphetamine.

According to KARK News 4, Dr. Ralph Henry, a professor at the University of Arkansas, is putting DNA proteins into a plant cell and then growing it. The protein would later be removed and used for treatment. The treatment works by binding the methamphetamine in the bloodstream and drawing it away from the brain. The cost would be cheaper than traditional laboratory research.

"Plants offer that alternative we think. They make proteins the way you and I do," Henry said. If his plan works, it could reduce current treatment costs by 80 percent. The $5 million project is funded by Arkansas tobacco settlement dollars. "We could become a tobacco producing state for the production of pharmaceuticals," Dr. Henry said.