A GW professor was chosen as the director of a new center at the Food and Drug Administration designed to place regulations on tobacco products, the FDA announced Tuesday. 

Lawrence Deyton, a professor in the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, will lead the FDA tobacco unit established by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act signed by President Barack Obama back in June.

Deyton will be in charge of regulating the ingredients tobacco companies can use and establishing regulations for the advertising of tobacco products.

Before joining the FDA, Deyton worked on public health programs for the Department of Veterans Affairs, including programs to help curb smoking among veterans.